


Power Trio

by JahnaBanana



Category: Glee
Genre: Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-10-25
Updated: 2015-02-17
Packaged: 2018-02-22 12:58:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 30
Words: 28,418
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2508701
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JahnaBanana/pseuds/JahnaBanana
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A collection of oneshots surrounding my favorite friendship Glee has ever explored, that of Blaine, Sam, and Tina. Some canon, some expansions of canon, some AUs... generally a mixed bag of things. All based on prompts given by a word generator.</p>
<p>VIVA LA BLAMTINA.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Cork

The night after they graduated, Tina and Sam found themselves over Blaine’s house, staying the night to celebrate with pizza and movies. Artie had been invited as well, but his family was taking him out to dinner.

The pizza arrived and Blaine set it down on the coffee table in front of the TV. “Before we get too comfortable, come to the kitchen,” he suggested, waving Sam and Tina into the room. 

Rummaging through the cabinets, Blaine passed champagne flutes to Sam and Tina. “I think tonight calls for a toast,” he announced, pulling the champagne from the refrigerator, popping the **cork** and filling his friends’ glasses before his own. “To our very own Miss Tina Cohen-Chang, for finally getting into Brown.”

Tina blushed and smiled, raising her glass. “To Blaine and Sam starting their new lives in New York.”

Sam joined their raised hands with one of his own. “To Glee club for bringing us together.”

“To Finn, for pulling us back together every time we fell apart,” Blaine sadly smiled. 

“To Mr. Schue, for having a dream that made us all realize our own,” Tina continued.

“To Burt and Carole, for supporting us through our last Nationals,” Sam added. 

“To all our worthy competition for bringing out the best in us,” Blaine nodded.

“To all the old friends waiting for you two in New York,” Tina frowned.

Sam grabbed Tina in a side-hug with the arm not holding the glass. “To all the new friends our amazing Miss Tina is gonna make at Brown.”

“To us,” Blaine smiled, hugging Tina from the other side and turning to close the circle and hug Sam as well. “Friends forever, no matter the distance.”

“To us.”

“To us.”


	2. Migraine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You'll notice that any sick or hurt type oneshots that end up a part of this are gonna be longer, I sort of have a thing for those?

“Mr. Evans, no falling asleep in class!” Mrs. Lincoln, the senior Literature teacher scolded Sam. 

Sam blinked blearily as he lifted his head from the desk. “Sorry,” he muttered an apology. 

Mrs. Lincoln nodded and turned back to the blackboard. “Now that Sam’s decided to join the rest of the class…” The rest of her words were drowned out as Sam lost focus again, lowering his head back onto the desk. 

“Sam!” Tina whispered, reaching across the aisle to shake the boy sitting next to her. “…You ok?” she asked. 

“Yeah, man, you look like hell,” Blaine added from the seat behind her. 

Sam pulled his sweatshirt hood up over himself, groaning. “ **Migraine** ,” he explained. “Kind of feel like I might die.”

“You know you don’t have to fall asleep in class,” Blaine smirked. “The nurse actually lets you do that in her office.”

“Don’t wanna move,” Sam groaned. “Literally might collapse.”

Blaine leaned forward with concern. “Sam, if it’s that bad, we’ll take you.”

Before Sam could protest, Tina was out of her seat, getting her things together to leave the room. “Mrs. Lincoln?” she called out.

The teacher turned around. “Miss Cohen-Chang, if you’re out of your seat for any reason other than to wake up Mr. Evans yourself, I’d suggest you sit back down.”

“Sam’s not sleeping, he’s sick,” Tina explained, placing a hand on Sam’s back as she stood there. “I think he needs to see the nurse… and someone should go with him.”

“Fine,” Mrs. Lincoln nodded. “But you, I expect to return to class, Miss Cohen-Chang.”

Tina nodded, turning her full attention to Sam. “Come on,” she whispered, guiding him out of his seat. “Let’s go.” She walked him to the door as best as she could, practically holding him up the entire way. 

Blaine shot up from his seat. “Mr. Anderson!” Mrs. Lincoln scolded. 

“Going with them,” Blaine explained, following them to the door and holding Sam up on the other side, taking some of the strain off of Tina. “Looked like you needed help,” he nodded to Tina. “And I did say we would take you,” he added to Sam. 

They trudged through the hallways, slowly making their way toward the nurse’s office. Sam was barely walking with them anymore- if Blaine and Tina hadn’t been holding him up, he’d never have made it. 

“Stop.” Blaine and Tina stopped in their tracks, turning toward Sam. “Just need… a minute…” He unhooked his arm from around Tina’s shoulder, leaning against a locker for support. His arm slipped from Blaine’s shoulder as well as he crashed to his knees, curling in on himself. “Gonna be sick,” he groaned, crossing his arms over his stomach before vomiting on the floor.

Tina recoiled for a second, but thought better of it and stayed close, placing a hand on Sam’s back and rubbing calming circles into it. He needed them right now. “Oh, Sam, it’s ok,” she frowned. “How about we get the nurse and bring her to you? You won’t have to move anymore, ok?”

“Hurts,” Sam groaned, keeling over and vomiting again. 

“I know,” Tina sighed, wrapping him in a gentle hug from behind. “Blaine, can you go get her? I’ll stay.”

Blaine took off for the nurse’s office, leaving Tina wrapped around Sam in the hallway. 

Blaine returned minutes later with the nurse. “Sam,” she spoke with concern, crouching down to his level. “Couldn’t make it to my office?” 

Sam shook his head. “Hurts too much,” he groaned. “Gonna collapse if I keep going.”

“OK,” she sympathized. “You need to lie down, but you need to be able to make it to my couch.”

Blaine stepped forward. “I’ll carry him.”

“No, Blaine,” Sam protested. “You don’t have to…”

“If you want to make it to the nurse without collapsing, yes, I have to.” He crouched down in front of Sam. “Hang on.”

Sam hooked his arms around Blaine’s neck and Blaine stood, piggybacking Sam down the hallway. “If I throw up down your back, don’t be mad at me?”

Blaine shook his head. “Of course not, Sam.”

Tina stifled a laugh at the sight before her. “I would so Instagram this if you didn’t look so miserable, Sam.”

“You should go,” Sam told Tina. “Mrs. Lincoln’s gonna be mad you’re not back yet.”

“Mrs. Lincoln can wait,” Tina replied. “I’m not leaving you until you’re safely curled up on that couch.”

They walked the rest of the way to the nurse’s office, Blaine setting Sam down on her couch. The bell rang and Blaine laughed. “Looks like Mrs. Lincoln is gonna have to do without us today,” he said.

Tina glanced at Sam- his eyes were already closed in an attempt to rest, and he’d curled in on himself, looking uncharacteristically small against the couch. She reached out and touched his shoulder. “We’re gonna go grab our stuff so we get to our next class on time,” she explained. “Well, Blaine’s gonna grab his stuff, I took mine. Just… feel better, OK, Sam?”  
Sam nodded.

“Yeah, feel better,” Blaine added. “We’ll text you later to check in, ok?”

“Thanks for doing this for me,” Sam forced a smile.

“Anytime,” Tina replied. “We’ve always got each other’s backs, you know that.”

Tina and Blaine left the nurse’s office together. “Ready to face Lincoln together?” Blaine asked. 

“Together?” Tina laughed. “Oh, no. I took my stuff. You’re going in there yourself.”

“What happened to ‘we’ve always got each other’s backs’, Tee?”

“Come back to me when you look as pathetic as he did and maybe I’ll give in,” Tina smirked, linking arms with Blaine and continuing down the hallway together.


	3. Tornado

Blaine shut the door behind him, ushering Sam and Tina down the stairs. “I’ve never been away from home during a **tornado** warning before,” Sam commented. “Usually we hide in this… run down old bathroom in our basement that I’m pretty sure no one’s actually used in like a hundred years. Me, Stevie and Stacey all cram into this tight little shower stall, and Mom and Dad stay in the opposite corner.”

“Well, I’m not going to make you cram into any stupidly tight spaces,” Blaine announced, opening another door. “My basement has an old nuclear fallout shelter.”

“Do you think if we ventured outside we’d get cool X-Men powers?” Sam asked.

Tina laughed. “Sam, this is a tornado warning, not actual nuclear fallout. And no, I’m pretty sure your face would just melt off.”

“Not a good look,” Sam replied. 

“No, not really,” Tina laughed, stepping into the shelter. “This thing is huge!” she commented. 

“Lots of canned vegetables,” Sam observed, eyes scanning the shelves. 

“We’re prepared,” Blaine shrugged. “I don’t think we’ll actually need any of it unless we’re stuck down here for days, though.” 

Sam ignored him, staring at the shelves in awe.

“I think we lost him,” Tina laughed. They watched as Sam wandered around, looking through all the emergency rations. 

“Let’s go sit down, he’ll come back to us eventually,” Blaine laughed, ushering Tina to a couch in the corner.

-five minutes later- 

“Oh, sweet! You have Spaghetti-O’s!”


	4. Comic

“Hey bro,” Sam hollered to Blaine across the hallway as they left class. “Meet me in the art room during free period and bring your Nightbird costume.”

Blaine stared at Sam incredulously. “What, you think I just carry it around with me at all times?”

“I keep mine around,” Sam shrugged. “You never know when someone’s gonna need help from the Blond Chameleon.” Blaine shook his head in amusement and Sam just stared. “So… that’s a no then?”

“That would be a no, Sam.”

“I just need to… see it, really,” Sam replied. “Bring it tomorrow, then?” 

“I have a picture in my locker, would that help?” Blaine shrugged.

“Probably, yeah, thanks,” Sam replied, taking off in the other direction. “Free period. Be there.”

Blaine entered the art room at the beginning of free period and found Tina already there. “Sam call you in here too?” he asked.

Tina shook her head. “No, I’m working on my senior project,” she replied, lifting the paintbrush in her hand for emphasis. “He did want me to bring my Asian Persuasion costume though,” she gestured to where she’d hung it above one of the other workstations. “That’s usually where he sits. Not sure what he’s doing, but he cornered me about the costume yesterday, I think he thought I just carry it around or something.”

“Yeah, he got me today,” Blaine laughed. “All I have is a picture from my locker, but he said it might work.”

Just then, Sam burst into the room. “Excellent, you’re both here!” he exclaimed, bounding over to the supplies in excitement. He grabbed a bunch of colored pencils and brought them back to his workstation, then heading into the project storage room to pick up his work in progress. 

Blaine awkwardly stood off to the side, waving the picture at Sam. “Was I just supposed to bring this and go, or…?”

“No, stay,” Sam answered. “Sit across from me for a bit.”

Blaine’s mouth dropped open as Sam flipped open the pages of a book and began drawing, occasionally glancing at the costumes and at Blaine for reference. “No way. Sam, are you… are you drawing a **comic** book?”

“Senior project,” Sam explained. “Adventures of Nightbird and Blond Chameleon. This issue has a guest appearance by Asian Persuasion.”

“What?” Tina exclaimed. “You never made me sit for you like that!”

Sam laughed. “No offense, Tee, but we’re both in here every day. I just use you as reference while you’re working.”

“I’ll bring the actual Nightbird costume for you tomorrow if you need it,” Blaine offered. “This is so cool,” he added. “I’m gonna star in a comic book by my best friend!”

“Co-star,” Sam clarified.

“Just so you know, I’m taking it as a personal offense if you don’t get an A on this project, considering I have top billing and all,” Blaine smirked.


	5. Showcase

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inspired by the fact that there wasn't a Winter Showcase for Blaine's year?

Blaine ran into the apartment, brandishing the envelope in his hands. “Sam!” he called out. “Sam!” 

Sam rushed into the room. “Yeah?” he asked breathlessly. 

Blaine waved the envelope excitedly. “I was invited to perform in the Winter **Showcase**!” 

“Dude!” Sam exclaimed excitedly. “Wait, that’s good, right?” 

“Yeah, it’s that thing that Rachel won last year- when we’d lost Sectionals and Finn wrote us all that letter to get us to come to that meeting outside?” Blaine explained. “It’s a huge thing, you have to be invited by Carmen herself, she hand delivers you the envelope… I thought Kurt was gonna die when she walked it into our Monologues class.”

“He’s excited for you?” Sam asked. 

“He’s already started preparing,” Blaine laughed. “Throwing sheet music at me, laying out outfit options… it’s borderline terrifying.”

“When is it?” Sam asked. “I mean, I’m totally coming regardless, but I wanna make sure I don’t schedule any shoots for that night or anything.” 

“Last Friday night before winter break,” Blaine replied, walking to the calendar to mark it down. He smiled when he saw another thing already marked on the calendar. “Oh hey, that’s when Tina’s coming, too!” he said excitedly. “I talked to her last week, her winter break starts a little before ours, so she’s coming here for a bit before we all go home.”

“Great!” Sam replied. “We should totally call her and tell her!”

Weeks later, Blaine found himself pacing backstage at the amphitheater, awaiting his turn on stage. Tina bounded up to him and wrapped him in a hug. “I’m so excited for you!” she shrieked. 

“Tee!” Blaine exclaimed. “Hey! How’d you get back here?” 

“You know there’s literally no one watching the doors?” Tina commented. “Sam’s idea, really.” She gestured behind her, where Sam was sheepishly waving from behind a curtain.

“Get out of here, you two,” Blaine playfully scolded them. “Go get good seats.” He shooed them away and continued pacing the floor. 

After the showcase, all the invited performers stood on the stage, awaiting the announcement of the winner. Blaine looked around, surveying the competition. Like Rachel the year before, he’d gone with two selections- a Broadway classic, and a Christmas song. He knew he’d at least done better than the boy who’d recited a monologue about his first time riding a horse. In fact, he was sure the whole thing had been an excuse for the boy to get away with tons of innuendo. 

Carmen stepped onto the stage with an envelope. “Thank you all for coming,” she addressed the audience. “And congratulations to all our performers on a job well done. But enough with the platitudes, our esteemed panel has decided on this year’s winner.” She cracked the envelope open, the sound of the little seal snapping echoing through the silent amphitheater. She turned to face the performers, and Blaine felt her eyes lock on his. “Blaine Anderson.”

Blaine was swept up in a flurry of congratulatory half-hugs and handshakes from the other performers, but it didn’t fully hit him until he stepped out into the hallway and was ambushed by the massive crowd of his friends. He felt himself smack into the wall when Sam attack-hugged him. “Sorry, dude,” Sam apologized. “But oh my God! Does this mean you’re like, famous now? Do I get to tell people my best friend is _the_ Blaine Anderson?”

“Sam, relax, it’s cool,” Blaine laughed. “I’m still just me.”

Kurt stood behind them, waiting to move in on Blaine. “If you’d excuse me, Sam, I’d like some time with my fiancé?” Sam backed off, but Tina pushed past Kurt, wrapping Blaine in a hug and looking over her shoulder at Kurt. “Sorry, but you’ll have him all night,” she laughed unapologetically. “He’s ours now.” She turned to Blaine and added, "Don't look now, but those bitches are staring daggers at you."

"They're seniors," Blaine groaned. "Just pissed off that a freshman took the title second year in a row."

"God, don't they have family and friends to validate them?" Tina said sarcastically. "You know, all the 'you're our winner' stuff? They look like the type of girls who need to hear that just to feel normal."

"They can suck it," Sam cut in. "Blaine's our winner. And being the actual one doesn't hurt, either."


	6. Coach

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Realized the night after I wrote this that Blaine was actually at the game Tina's explaining to him... suspend your disbelief and run with it.

“I think I might be dead,” Tina groaned, throwing herself at Blaine on the sidelines after the football game. “Why did we decide to join the Cheerios, of all things?”

“Because Glee Club is over and we have nothing better to do?” Blaine suggested. “We probably should have waited until football season was over, though. Coming in mid-season is a bit much to handle.”

“Coming in at all is too much to handle,” Tina groaned, stretching against the bleachers. “Parts of me are sore that I didn’t even know I had.” 

The door to the field house opened and Sam jogged out, joining them. “Hey, guys, enjoy your first game as Cheerios?”

“We’re alive, if that counts for anything,” Tina sighed. “Never been overworked so hard in my life.” 

“Yeah, Brittany’s always complaining about how hard Sue works her,” Sam commented. “I’m not entirely convinced she’s a real **coach** , she sounds like more of a tyrant.” 

“Pretty sure she’s hell-bent on murder,” Tina groaned, flopping down onto the bleachers. “At least Bieste treats you guys right. Maybe we should have played football.”

“Last time you played football, some huge guy nearly flattened you, Tee,” Sam replied, sitting next to her. “Not letting that happen again. I like my Tina in 3D, not 2D.” 

“You played football?” Blaine asked incredulously. 

“It was like, one game,” Tina explained. “A bunch of us girls did it. Rachel said we should just kind of… lay on the field and do nothing? Because they just needed enough people to play. So as long as we were on the field it counted or something. But nothing was happening and I got annoyed and jumped up and ran the ball.”

“Then you almost died,” Sam threw in. “He knocked you out for a bit, Tee.” 

“Oh please, Sam,” Tina scoffed. “You were practically flattened in one of your first games, too, if you remember. And you had a busted shoulder to show for it.”

“Yeah, no,” Blaine shook his head, sitting on Tina’s other side and wrapping an arm around her. “You’re not playing any football. No one flattens my best friends and gets away with it.” 

Just then, Kitty jogged over to them. “You two wrap it up, Coach Sue’s going over the performance tape and she wants us all there.” She turned and ran back to the crowd of Cheerios heading into the locker room.

Sam shrugged and stood up. “I should get going anyway,” he said, heading in the other direction. “Good luck, guys. Try not to die.”

“Can’t promise you anything,” Tina replied. “But you know who to blame if they find us dead.”


	7. Motel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sooo...emotional!Sam is apparently something else I have a thing for.

All that remained in the gym as a remnant of senior prom was the balloons and confetti strewn across the floor, and the puddles of deep red slushie staining the stage. Most people had long since left, laughter ringing through the parking lot at Tina’s crowning moment. Tina herself had stayed behind, Blaine offering her the key to the locker rooms, entrusted to him by Sue. “Being a Cheerio once apparently had its perks, I can do pretty much anything,” he told her. “Go wash your hair out, we’ll wait here.” 

He ignored her protests of “I was a Cheerio once too!” laughing as he ushered her into the locker room, shutting the door behind her and waiting with Sam for her return. 

“Hey,” Tina sighed upon stepping out of the locker room, hair freshly un-sticky. “Can you guys just… take me home?”

Blaine shook his head, pulling her into a hug. “On the contrary, Miss Tina. We are going to have an afterparty. Whether you won that prom queen title or not, tonight you’re our queen and we’re celebrating it.”

“Aww, thanks,” Tina smiled, following Blaine and Sam out the door and to Blaine’s car. 

They drove until they reached the outskirts of Lima, Blaine pulling into a parking lot. “Here we are,” he announced, getting out of the car. “I booked us a room at the **motel** to stay up all night and party. Snacks are in the trunk.”

“Blaine…” Sam started. 

“Yeah, I know, half the senior class is probably here doing it, it’s the only motel in Lima,” he laughed. “But we can party hard enough to drown them out, right?” 

“Sure,” Sam muttered, looking down. 

Tina’s eyes caught Sam’s before he dropped them to the ground and the realization hit her. “Oh, Blaine, you didn’t,” she whispered, pulling him away. “Come here.” Blaine followed her a couple steps away from the car and away from Sam. “Blaine, this is the motel Sam had to stay in when he was homeless.” She glanced back toward Sam with concern and found him leaning against the car, staring up at the motel blankly. 

“Oh my God,” Blaine breathed. “I totally didn’t realize… I’m the worst friend ever.”

Tina shook her head. “No, you’re not,” she assured him. “You just made a mistake. That’s OK.”

“It’s the only motel in Lima… I should have known… oh my God,” he panicked. “I’ve been the worst friend ever tonight. I should’ve stepped in to save you from that slushie. I should have realized this was that motel. I’m just… I’m sorry, OK? I’m sorry I didn’t think to warn you or push you out of the way or something.”

“Blaine, relax,” Tina sighed, grabbing onto his forearms to ground him. “I’m not mad at you. He’s not gonna be mad at you. These things happen, OK? They suck, but they happen.” She glanced worriedly toward the car and found Sam with his face in his hands. “We should head back over, though, Sam is starting to look really upset.”

Blaine grabbed Tina’s hand and they walked back toward Sam together. Sam pulled his hands away, glancing up from the ground, tears stinging at his eyes as he choked back a sob. “I’m so sorry,” Blaine apologized, pulling Sam into a hug. “I didn’t realize. I’m so sorry, please don’t be mad?”

“I’m not mad, I promise,” Sam whispered, his voice tearful and raspy. “Just…” he gestured hopelessly toward the motel, unable to express exactly how he felt. “It’s just a lot for me right now. I told myself I’d never end up back here, and just… seeing it… it’s a lot to take in.”

“I get it,” Blaine sighed. “Listen, we don’t have to stay. Come on, let’s get out of here.”

“No,” Sam cried. “This is Tina’s night, don’t worry about me. We should have fun.”

“No, we should go,” Tina affirmed, moving in to hug Sam. “We can go to Breadstix or something, then back to my place. It’ll still be fun.”

“Tee, it’s your night, I don’t want to ruin it,” Sam sighed, wiping the tears from his face. 

“Damn right it’s my night,” Tina smiled. “It’s my night and you’re my friends and I want everyone to be happy. If it’s making you upset, we’re not staying here.” Tina paused and looked at the ground sheepishly. “I’m sorry I ditched you for the stupid title,” she apologized. “For what it’s worth, you would have been an awesome prom date.”

“Thanks,” Sam cried.

“Tell you what,” Tina offered, opening the car door and climbing in, ushering Sam in behind her. “I’ll save you a dance at my place.”

Blaine climbed into the driver’s seat. “Off to Breadstix for the best prom afterparty ever?”

Tina smiled. “Your queen demands it.”


	8. Ankle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...Literally, someone stop me from writing hurt!fic.

They were in Mr. Schue’s booty camp when it happened. A couple turns to the right, and Blaine overshot his mark and tumbled off the side of the top riser, crashing to the floor with an echoing thud. “Stop!” Mr. Schue signaled to the audio guy. “Stop the music. Blaine, are you OK?”

Blaine propped himself up on his elbows from where he fell, fighting to regain his breath. “Yeah, I’ll be fine, just got the wind knocked out of me,” he replied. He moved to stand and rejoin the group, wincing when a sharp pain shot through his right **ankle**. “Ow, wait, ow, I might have twisted my ankle too.” He sank back to the floor and the rest of the glee club immediately rushed to his side.

Sam knelt down next to him, helping him into a sitting position. “You OK?” he asked. “How bad does it hurt?”

“It’s like… throbbing pain. But I think I’ll be OK,” Blaine groaned, pulling his injured ankle up to inspect it. 

“Is there someone you want me to call?” Mr. Schue asked, joining the rest of the club around Blaine.

“No, I’ll be fine,” Blaine sighed, hissing in pain as he prodded his ankle experimentally. “Just… maybe I should stop for now?”

“You’re done for the day, Blaine,” Mr. Schue affirmed. “Do you want someone to help you to the nurse’s office?”

“It’s already 4:30, she’s gone for the day,” Sam replied. “I can take him home.”

Mr. Schue nodded. “I think we’ve gone over the routine enough times today that I can let you all go a little early,” he said. “You’re all free to go. You gonna be OK here?” he turned toward Sam and Blaine. “Can you help him out of here yourself?”

“I’ve got it, thanks,” Sam confirmed. 

The rest of the glee club began filing out of the auditorium, shooting Blaine get-well wishes as they left (along with a threat from Kitty that he’d better be dancing by Nationals or he’d be the reason they lost- he was sure she meant well by it somehow), until all that were left with Blaine were Sam and Tina.

“I’m not leaving,” Tina confirmed, kneeling next to Blaine and pulling him into a hug. “You OK?”

“Yeah,” Blaine sighed. “Just hurts. I’ll be fine.”

“Let me see,” Tina said, moving around him until she was in front of him and taking his injured ankle in her hands. 

“Ow!” Blaine snapped, pulling away at the contact. 

Sam lightly slapped Tina on the shoulder. “Tina, be careful!” he scolded her. 

“Sorry,” Tina apologized, carefully unlacing Blaine’s shoe. “Let me know if I’m hurting you, OK?”

Blaine nodded, biting his lip to keep from crying out. Tina gently removed the shoe and pulled down his sock, cringing at the deep indentation marks left because of the swelling. “You’re already swelling up pretty bad,” she frowned. “Let’s get you home so you can get some ice on that.”

Sam stood, holding a hand out for Blaine to take. “Come on, stand up, but don’t put any pressure on that ankle, ok?” He turned to Tina. “Tee, grab his other hand? Balance him out?”

Tina took Blaine’s other hand and together they pulled him to his feet. He leaned all of his weight into his left side, and leaned heavily into Sam, who stood on that side of him. Sam pulled Blaine’s arm up and over his shoulder, effectively making himself a crutch. “Tee, other side?” Sam instructed her, smiling as she took her place under Blaine’s other arm. “OK, Blaine, we’re gonna start going, OK?” Sam alerted him. Blaine nodded. “Just try to keep your weight off your bad ankle. You can try to put a little weight on it at first, but the second it starts to hurt you don’t have to anymore. We’re holding onto you, so you can use just one foot if you need to.”

Blaine nodded and took a step forward with them on his good foot, stopping to test his injured ankle against the floor. He placed it gently down, shifting his weight onto it slightly. “Ow! No!” he yelped, quickly shifting his weight back to his good side. “Ow, that really hurt.”

“You’re OK,” Sam reassured him, steadying him with a hand on his back. “Just stay off it now. You can prop it up in the back of my car, OK? Tee and I will take the front.”

The trio slowly made their way to Sam’s car, making sure Blaine was comfortable in the back before jumping into the front seats and driving him home. Upon pulling into Blaine’s driveway, they helped him out of the car and up the stairs to his house. Setting him down on the couch, Sam and Tina sprung into action. Sam disappeared up the stairs, and Tina got to work taking care of Blaine. “I’m gonna get you some ice for that,” Tina said, snatching one of the pillows off the couch and putting it on the coffee table, pulling it a little closer to Blaine. “Up,” she ordered Blaine. Blaine lifted his injured ankle and rested it on the pillow, relaxing into the arm of the couch. She disappeared into the kitchen and Sam bounded down the stairs, brandishing hands full of Disney movies.

“If you’re stuck here on the couch, we’re sticking here with you and making a movie night of it,” Sam smiled, sitting next to Blaine on the couch. 

Tina returned with the ice, placing it gently over Blaine’s ankle, which was already beginning to turn a bunch of nasty colors. “Need anything else?” Tina asked him. “You need an Advil or something for the pain?”

“Please?” Blaine replied. Tina dug through her purse to find the Advil, Sam tossing Blaine his bottle of water. “Thanks.”

Sam stood and put the first movie in, disappearing into the kitchen for snacks. Once they were finished, he sat back down next to Blaine, Tina next to him, and pressed play. If anyone in school the next day asked how Blaine was feeling, no one had to know they spent the night curled up in each other on the couch, having fallen asleep halfway through Tangled.


	9. Spar

The club sat in silence, still shell-shocked by Brittany’s outburst. Sam turned his phone over and over in his hands, staring at it in shock. “Dude, she just broke up with me. In a text. While I was standing right here.”

“You ok?” Blaine asked. 

“I don’t know,” Sam sighed, still playing with his phone. 

Blaine reached over and put a hand over Sam’s, stopping him from messing with the phone. “Stop fidgeting,” he scolded him. “You want to let out your frustration, meet me in the gym later.” 

After glee, Sam met up with Blaine in the gym. “You ever boxed before?” he asked, leading Sam to the punching bag. Sam shook his head. “Then you’re gonna want these.” He held out a pair of protective gloves. “Your knuckles would bleed like crazy without them. I’ve built up calluses, they don’t crack anymore,” he explained. 

Sam slipped the gloves on and started punching at the bag haphazardly. Blaine steadied the swinging bag with both hands. “Keep that up, and the bag’s gonna catch you in the face on backswing. Would you rather practice on me?”

Sam gaped at him. “What?” 

Blaine nodded. “ **Spar** with me.” 

“I can’t... I can’t hit you,” Sam said. “I don’t want to hurt you just because I’m frustrated.”

“Sam, it’s OK, I do this all the time, I can take a couple hits.” 

Sam stepped back tentatively, stepping into a fighting stance. “Are you sure?” he asked. 

“Positive,” Blaine smiled. “I just want to help you get your frustration out. Did you want me to fight too?”

“I… what?” Sam stepped back. 

“I could hit back,” Blaine explained. “Make it like a real fight. But only if you’re OK with it, of course. Otherwise I’ll just stand here and take your punches.” 

Sam thought about it for a second. “Um… sure,” he agreed.

“You’re sure?” Blaine asked. “Because I’m not making you do anything. I want this to be as safe as possible for both of us. You wanna back out at any time, just step back and let me know, OK?”

“OK,” Sam agreed, stepping back into his fighting stance. “I’m ready.”

Sam threw the first punch, landing it square on Blaine’s shoulder, which recoiled from the impact and bounced back, Blaine never breaking stance. Blaine flung a fist forward and it landed square in the center of Sam’s chest, the force knocking him backwards into the wall. “Shit,” Sam breathed, pulling himself to his feet. “We’re allowed to hit that hard?”

“Yeah,” Blaine replied. “You OK? You want to stop?”

“I’m fine,” Sam assured him. “Just caught me off guard.”

“You ready to keep going?” Blaine asked. “Don’t hold back now, OK?”

“Got it,” Sam replied, lowering himself into a more defensive stance. 

Punches flew every which way until both boys were falling backwards onto the gym floor at least a half hour later, exhausted from the fight. “You OK?” Sam asked.

“Yeah,” Blaine replied. “You?”

“These bruises are gonna kill, but yeah. Fine,” Sam agreed. They exited the gym together and headed to their lockers. 

“There you two are!” Tina shouted from down the hall, bounding up to the pair. “Lost track of you guys after glee club, so I stopped in the library to finish some work.” She glanced up as she reached them. “Oh my God, what happened to you two?” she asked. “Who do I have to kill for beating the crap out of my best friends?” Sam and Blaine looked sheepishly at each other, and Tina gasped. “Oh my God, did you two have a fight? I should… I should go. You’re my best friends, I can’t pick a side, I…”

“Tina, relax,” Blaine cut her off. “Sam was upset about what happened with Brittany, so I brought him here to have a go at the punching bag. Turns out he’s a bit of a spaz at the bag so we sparred instead.”

Tina sighed in relief. “You both look like shit,” she laughed.

“It’s just bruising,” Sam dismissed her. “We’ll be fine, Tee.”

Tina smiled, wrapping an arm around both of them. “Could you maybe try not to kill each other next time?”

“I make no promises, Tee,” Blaine joked, the three of them walking out of the school together.


	10. Lamp

Sam switched the TV off after one of their Disney movie marathon nights. They had just finished watching Aladdin, and it was getting to be late into the night. “Hey,” he started, Blaine’s and Tina’s heads snapping up to look at him. “What do you think you’d wish for if you had a magic **lamp**?”

“I think…” Blaine sighed. “I think I’d take back the whole cheating thing. I’m glad everything worked out, but it still shouldn’t have happened. There were months there that I felt so… alone. ”

“And then you found us,” Sam replied. “Glad we could help you be happy again.”

“Yeah, thanks, guys,” Blaine smiled. “And you’ve been so supportive- without Kurt, with Kurt and I getting back together, and the proposal…”

“Anytime, Blaine,” Sam nodded. “That’s what best friends do.” He turned to Tina. “What about you, Tee? What would you wish for?” 

“I’d wish for a way to get to go to New York with you guys. I mean…. Brown’s gonna be great, but I’m gonna miss you guys so much.”

“You know the offer still stands,” Blaine reminded her. “The only thing stopping you is you deciding you didn’t want to go without a plan. And you decided before Brown called that you were totally in, anyway.”

“True,” Tina sighed. “But I’m still really excited about Brown.”

“And you should be!” Sam encouraged her. “It’s totally awesome that you finally got what you wanted!”

“But if you ever find yourself wanting out, the offer will always stand,” Blaine added. He turned toward Sam. “What about you, Sam?” he asked.

“I think… no, I know,” Sam sighed. “I wish there was a way we could have Finn back.” Tina and Blaine sadly nodded. “I mean, for obvious reasons, we all loved the guy. But maybe… maybe he would’ve found a way to save the glee club, too. Maybe we could have won with him leading us… instead of me.”

“Sam…” Blaine started. “Don’t, OK? You did a great job.”

“But we lost,” Sam sighed.

“We lost because Throat Explosion were worthy competitors,” Blaine replied. “Not because you did anything wrong. You were amazing. We were amazing. And Finn was there with us. You made sure of that.” 

Sam nodded sadly. “I guess,” he agreed. 

“This is turning out… a lot more depressing than you wanted it to, isn’t it, Sam?” Blaine commented. 

“Yeah,” Sam sighed. “Just a little.”

“In that case, I’m gonna go get the ice cream, because that makes everything better,” Tina nodded, running off to the kitchen. 

Tina returned with a gallon of ice cream and three spoons, and began passing the carton around. “I know we were supposed to be done, but wanna watch another?” she suggested. 

Sam flipped the TV back on. “Thought you’d never ask.”


	11. Ring

Blaine, Sam, and Tina walked out of the jewelry store together, Blaine toying with the **ring** box in his pocket. “Stop that!” Tina hissed. “We didn’t ask for a bag because we didn’t want evidence. Being fidgety isn’t helping your case. At all.”

Blaine removed his hand from his pocket. “Sorry, Tee, it’s just… this is real now. I have a ring. I’m literally going to ask Kurt to marry me. Can you blame me if I’m a little excited, a little nervous, a little… everything?”

“So when are you gonna do it?” Sam asked excitedly. “Like, tomorrow? Or…”

“Sam, relax,” Blaine laughed. “I’m not gonna ask him tomorrow. I… want to wait until it feels right. I have to do it before he goes back, of course. But this takes planning. You know Kurt, he loves the grand gestures. He deserves to be treated like a king, he’s worth it.”

“Correction,” Tina interrupted. “He loves your grand gestures. Because you’re you. Anyone else could try to plan something without his involvement and he’d go insane. I’m sure if he knew anything about this, he’d literally try to plan his own proposal.”

Blaine huffed in fake offense. “What if I like it when Kurt takes control?”

“Didn’t need to know that, dude,” Sam deadpanned. 

“I…” Blaine sputtered. “You know what I meant!” His hand flew back into his pocket, turning the ring box over and over between his fingers. 

“Blaine, stop it,” Tina snapped, pulling his hand forcefully from his pocket and holding it. “Have to stop you somehow,” she smirked, swinging their arms in tandem. She eyed Blaine’s other hand, snaking around himself to snatch the box and put it in the pocket closer to that hand. “Sam!” she warned. Sam grabbed Blaine’s other hand.

“Oh, come on!” Blaine protested. “If you don’t let go, I’m not letting you be a part of the proposal. Or the wedding. And I want you to be.” 

“Oh please,” Tina scoffed. “You love us too much to hold to that. We could hold your hands through the rest of this mall and you’d still love us.”

“You’ve got me there,” Blaine admitted. “Love you guys. But really. I’d like my hands back.”


	12. Salad

I want all the details,” Tina leaned over the lunch table excitedly. “How was it, how was New York?” 

“Amazing,” Blaine sighed dreamily. 

“I meant the part where you weren’t staying inside with Kurt all day,” Tina smirked. 

“Hey!” Blaine fought back. “I… did things! We did! We did things!” Blaine saw Sam walking up to the table. “Sam!” he hollered. “Please tell Tina we did things in New York.”

Sam laughed. “Dude, I know you wanna do me and all, but I think I’d remember if we actually did.”

“I didn’t mean…” Blaine laughed. “You know exactly what I meant.” Sam slid into the seat next to him at the table, and he glanced at Sam’s lunch tray, which only had a plate of **salad** on it. “Sam, what? It’s Taco Tuesday, you love Taco Tuesday!”

“Just didn’t feel like it today,” Sam shrugged.

“Sam, is this about Miss Bichette calling you fat?” Blaine sighed. “Because I thought we went over that already. You’re far from fat, Sam.”

“You heard Coach Sue earlier,” Sam fought back. “She thinks so too.”

“You’re really going to listen to Sue Sylvester? And a lady named Bitch?” Tina scoffed. “Of all the people in the world, they’re the people you’re choosing to listen to? We are your friends, Sam. Come on.”

“It’s not that I believe any of them,” Sam groaned. “It’s just… what if I never get a modeling job because of it? I might as well do something proactive, right? I’m not willing to starve myself for a job, but I can do a whole bunch of healthy stuff so they never say anything in the first place, right?” 

“Eating healthy is… it’s great, Sam,” Blaine reasoned with him. “But it’s not worth it if you’re doing it for anyone but yourself. If you’re just doing this because other people think it’s OK to call you fat, you’re doing it for all the wrong reasons.”

“I am doing it for myself!” Sam fought back. “If I want to land a modeling job, I have to look how they want me to look!”

“Oh, please,” Tina scoffed. “If they want to pass you up because of how you look, A- they’re blind, and B- they don’t deserve you anyway. I know you want this, I know you do. But I’ll be damned if I let you change yourself for someone else.”

“Thanks, Tee, but…”

“But nothing, don’t you dare,” Tina snapped. “You are perfect just the way you are. Now shut up and go get some tacos.”


	13. Soccer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...no literally, stop me, this is a thing. A recurring thing.

A banner above the entrance to the field read “McKinley High School Club **Soccer** Tournament”. Sue had had the bright idea to keep all the clubs’ attendance up by involving them in fun school-wide activities, her latest idea being this tournament. The challengers for the game of the day were the glee club and the football team. A mass of students walked out onto the field together, meeting Will and Bieste in the middle. 

“Alright, guys, footballers with me, glee clubbers with Will,” Beiste announced. “Overlaps can pick their team.” The group separated, Sam taking the side of the football team. 

“Hey, that’s no fun!” Blaine protested, pouting at Sam.

“Oh, yes it is,” Tina smirked evilly at Sam. “You’re going down, Evans.”

“Play fair, everyone!” Bieste announced, blowing her whistle to signal the start of the game. 

Halfway through the game, and the score was close. Between the glee club’s smaller, more easily maneuverable bodies, Artie steamrolling the feet of several jocks, and the million penalty shots the glee club got for foul play on the part of the footballers, and the glee club were holding their own quite well.

The ball was passed to an open part of the field, and it was in the sights of both Sam and Tina. Sam ran down the field after the ball, Tina right behind him. “That ball is mine!” she playfully taunted, gaining on him. 

“You wish!” Sam called back. 

They both reached the ball, fighting to take control of it. Sam’s foot connected first, kicking it out of the way. Tina’s kick made contact instead with the back of Sam’s leg, sending them both to the ground in a tangled heap. 

Tina stood, sprinting off to reposition herself for the next play. On the sidelines, Bieste leaped from her seat, frantically blowing her whistle and charging onto the field. Tina’s eyes followed Bieste across the field, finally stopping where she’d collided with Sam. Sam was still laying on the field, Bieste and Will now hovering over him as he writhed on the ground in pain. All Tina could hear now that the crowd had gone silent were the loud, agonizing, screaming sobs coming from Sam. A horrible feeling washed over her. She’d done this to him. 

She swore under her breath, taking off toward the chaos. “Sam!” she shrieked, pushing through the crowd, coming to a stop beside him and dropping to her knees. Several team staff and medical staff were already surrounding him, along with Blaine, who’d pushed his way in on the other side of Sam. The other glee clubbers and some of the footballers hung around outside the tight circle. “Oh my God, Sam,” she watched him with concern, her heart breaking for him a little more with every cry of pain. She could vaguely hear Will offering to call for an ambulance, and watched him walk away. Once Will was out of view, she glanced over at the field medic, who was feeling around Sam’s leg at the site of the injury, causing the terrible cries Tina wished she could stop. 

She threw her arms protectively around Sam and glared at the medic. “Stop!” she shrieked. “You’re hurting him!”

The medic shot her an amused look. “Kid, your boyfriend’s broken his leg pretty bad, he’s gonna be hurt whether I’m here or not.” 

Tina didn’t even bother correcting him. She chanced a glance down at Sam’s injured leg, and had to force herself not to scream. The leg was bent in a completely unnatural place, at a completely unnatural angle. She gripped Sam tighter, letting him scream and cry into her shoulder. “It’s OK,” she reassured him. “I’m so sorry.”

“Not your fault,” Sam cried, shaking against her as she hugged him. 

“If I wasn’t going for the ball at the same time, I wouldn’t have kicked you, and you wouldn’t be hurt,” Tina cried, burying her face in his shoulder as he cried into hers.

“I’m not mad,” he spoke through thick tears. “Or upset, or… anything. Not really feeling any emotions besides ‘unbearable pain’ right now.” 

“It’s my fault,” Tina sobbed. “You’re hurt because of me. Please don’t cry, it’s gonna be OK, please don’t cry?”

“I’m crying because it hurts, Tee,” Sam replied. “But I’ll try not to cry if you try not to…” He paused and let out a sharp gasp of pain when the medic adjusted the position of his leg, screaming out so painfully it broke Tina all over again. 

“It’s OK, you’re OK,” she reassured him, clinging to him as tightly as possible. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, please don’t cry, I’m sorry.” 

“Tee, I don’t wanna see you upset over this,” Sam choked out, attempting to breathe again after screaming so much. “It could have happened to anyone,” Sam sighed. “Accidents happen.”

“OK…” Tina frowned. “But it still kills me to see you like this, I don’t like it when my friends are upset or hurt and there’s nothing I can do…” Finally, she could hear ambulance sirens approaching the field and she visibly relaxed against Sam. “They’re here,” she whispered to him, although she was more reassuring herself than anything. “You’re OK now. You’re gonna be OK.”

“Come on, Tee, let’s go,” Blaine urged her, standing up from Sam’s other side and placing a hand on his shoulder. “We’re gonna meet you at the hospital, OK?” Sam nodded and the pair walked away, Blaine wrapping an arm around Tina. They reached Blaine’s car and got in. “Tee,” Blaine started before pulling away. “You know he’s not gonna blame you for this…”

“But it is my fault!” Tina fought back. “I don’t know if I’ll ever forgive myself for hurting him so badly.”

“For what it’s worth, he’s already forgiven you.”

Tina and Blaine drove mostly in silence the rest of the way to Lima Memorial, sinking into side-by-side chairs in the emergency room waiting area. The ambulance had blown past them at one point, so they knew Sam was already here, and when they arrived, they saw Sam’s family get called into the back to be with him. Tina nervously glanced around the room once they left. “Shit,” she whispered. “Why didn’t I realize that?”

“What?” Blaine asked. 

“Sam’s family’s here. They know it was me. They know I’m the one who hurt their son and their brother.”

Blaine shook his head and pulled Tina into a side-hug. “You worry too much, Tee,” he replied. “Like Sam said. Accidents happen. No one is mad at you.”

After another half hour or so, Sam’s mother, brother, and sister emerged from the back, and Blaine leaped up to greet them. “Is he OK?” he asked.

Sam’s mother nodded. “They’ve just finished, we’re going to bring the car around to take him home.” They left, and Sam and his father emerged from the back, Sam’s father pushing him in the hospital-issue wheelchair he was required to leave the hospital in. Blaine walked over to greet them, Tina behind him. “Told you we’d be here,” Blaine smiled, the pair of them walking to the door with them. 

“Thanks,” Sam smiled. “Love you guys.”

“I’m sorry,” Tina apologized again. 

Sam shook his head. “Tee, I told you I’m not mad or anything,” he assured her. “It was an accident, it could have been anybody.” 

“No, I’m sorry I just… sat there and cried. I wish I could have done more. That field medic was poking and prodding at you and really hurting you. I couldn’t stand to see you hurting so much,” Tina sighed. “You crying was making me cry. The screaming broke my heart, Sam. I wanted to help you, so much.”

“Just being there was enough, Tee. I needed that shoulder to cry on, even if you were crying with me. And I’m on like… amazing painkillers right now, so no more tears,” Sam smiled. Tina smiled and laughed, pulling Sam into a half-hug, the best she could do with him seated.

“I mean it, Tee, if I hear from anyone…” he paused and glanced at Blaine, who nodded conspiratorially. “….anyone, that you’re still beating yourself up over this, I’m sending someone after you every day until I’m well enough to do it myself.”

The car pulled up and Sam’s father helped him from the wheelchair, passing him the crutches to walk the rest of the way to the car. Blaine and Tina smothered Sam in a real hug immediately. “Go home and rest up, OK?” Blaine told him. 

“And call us when you feel rested up enough to spend time with us.” Tina added.

“I’m feeling OK now,” Sam suggested.

Blaine shook his head. “Nope. You’re drugged. Call us when you feel better without the painkillers.”

Sam nodded, climbing carefully into the car, waving out the window. “Thanks again, guys. For just….. being there.”

“Anytime, Sam,” Blaine replied. “Feel better, OK?”

“Yeah,” Tina added. “Please?”

“I’ll try,” Sam nodded. “And Blaine, I meant that about texting me if she blames herself again.”

“Done,” Blaine promised, wrapping an arm around Tina. “She’ll be fine.”

The car pulled away and Blaine turned to Tina. “OK, maybe I lied a little bit. Sappy movie night at my place? You can cry all you want and I won’t tell.”

Tina wrapped Blaine in a hug. “And this is why I love you.”


	14. Junk

Sam was lounging on the couch, relaxing and watching TV after a long day at the modeling agency. They’d gone over hundreds of new projects today, trying to find some local shoots that Sam could be sent to. He was just getting into what he thought was the fifth episode of his Facts Of Life marathon- he’d lost count somewhere around the third- when his phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID quickly before answering it.

“Hey, Tina,” he greeted her.

“Well, hello, Mr. Big Shot Underwear Model,” Tina replied.

“The Bubble thing?” Sam asked. “It’s not… well, it’s hardly a ‘big shot’ thing… get me in some Calvin Kleins and then we’ll talk about big shot. We had the release party for the ad campaign last night, it should be going up soon. Let me know if you want me to hook you up or something.”

“Actually, that’s what I was calling to congratulate you on,” Tina smiled. “I’ve seen it, and they look amazing. You look amazing.”

“It’s out?” Sam asked excitedly, pulling his laptop over and pulling up the Bubble website. He found himself staring himself in the face as the website cycled through several of his shots.

“Who knew Providence, Rhode Island was a prime advertising location for padded underwear?” Tina laughed.

“Wait, what?”

“Yeah, I saw it on campus, I kind of had to explain to the friend I was walking to class with why I shrieked when the campus shuttle pulled up.”

Sam bounced excitedly. “I’m on a bus?” he laughed. “Like, really? I’m actually on a real life bus? I thought you meant you saw the website, I mean, those are up too, I just checked, but oh my God. I’m on a bus. Is my **junk** as big as a car?”

“Sam!” Tina laughed.

“Is it?”

Tina shook her head. “You were huge,” she laughed. “All of you. The whole side of the shuttle.”

“Oh my God,” Sam breathed. “I…. actually can’t believe it a little bit, I have to…. I have to go find one here! I have to tell Blaine! And Mercedes! And everybody! I have to…”

“Go! Find one!” Tina interrupted him. “I’ll send you a picture of the one I saw.”

“You took a picture?”

“Of course I did!” Tina exclaimed. “Now go send me a picture of the first one you find!”

Tina hung up, and Sam ran out of the living room of the apartment to find Blaine. “Blaine!” he shrieked. “My Bubble photos are up!”

“What?” Blaine replied excitedly. “No way! Oh my God! Congrats, Sam!” He ran to his laptop, pulling up the site. “Oh my God, Sam! This is amazing!”

“And you’re not gonna believe this,” Sam added, excitedly waving his phone just as it dinged with the message from Tina. “Tina just called me? She saw one by her. On the side of a bus.” He opened Tina’s message and shoved the phone into Blaine’s hands.

“Sam, that’s… that’s great!” Blaine shouted excitedly, grabbing Sam in a hug.

“I wanna go see if there are any here,” Sam replied, taking off for the door. “You coming?”

“Yeah!” Blaine agreed, heading out behind Sam.

“OK, I was thinking to try the area right around the agency, there was some new stuff going up when I left earlier.”

They took off in the direction of the modeling agency, stopping when they hit the corner across from the building. “Dude,” Sam breathed, pointing up at the building that housed the agency. Large billboards decorated the sides of the building, putting on display several of the agency’s contracted models, Sam’s positioned right on the corner.

“Oh my God, Sam!” Blaine wrapped an arm around him, pulling him in excitedly. “I’m so excited for you, oh my God. Stand right here, I’m gonna take your picture with it.” Blaine brandished his phone, backing up and framing Sam in the shot. Sam pointed up at the billboard, posing for the shot.

“Hey, send that to Tina,” Sam told Blaine. “I told her I’d send her the first one I found.”

“Done!” Blaine replied, showing Sam the picture he took. “Come on.”

“Where are we going?” Sam asked, following Blaine down the street.

“Congratulations dinner’s on me, big shot.”


	15. Silence

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's different, it's... introspective? I guess?

Blaine sat huddled quietly against the piano. It had only been minutes since they’d heard the gunshots go off, and their “Thank God The World Isn’t Ending” glee practice was over before it had even had the chance to start. He refused to speak after being shushed the first time, instead just nodding or shaking his head when Artie acknowledged him. He sat with his head in his hands- he didn’t need anybody acknowledging him right now.

The terrified **silence** was broken by a clamoring across the room. Blaine peeked out from behind his hands and immediately wished he hadn’t- Sam was standing at the door, begging Mr. Schue and Coach Bieste to let him leave the room and find Brittany. Blaine’s breath caught in his throat- _please don’t go, Sam, please don’t go_ \- he thought, relaxing only when he felt Sam sink to the floor across from him, Mr. Schue having practically had to wrestle him back to the floor.

“Tina isn’t here either,” Blaine offered up, the first words he’d spoken in a while hoping to make Sam feel, if not better, at least like he wasn’t alone in this. His words did anything but calm Sam, though. Blaine, Sam, and Artie shared horrified glances- two of their own were out there somewhere. Two people who were very special to the boys behind the piano. Blaine dropped his head back into his hands, falling silent again.

Being quiet, Blaine could hear everything around him, although he barely registered any of it. He could vaguely hear Marley and Kitty, just on the other side of a couple pieces of equipment, talking and crying. He could vaguely hear when Kitty broke away, running across the room to where Ryder and Unique sat. He almost didn’t register what happened next until Sam was practically tripping over him, taking off toward the door and ignoring Mr. Schue and Coach Bieste’s protests.

Blaine turned, holding his breath and watching as Mr. Schue and Coach Bieste fought against Sam, calming his hysterics and trying to keep him from leaving the room. Artie reached out and put a comforting hand on Blaine’s knee, but Blaine barely registered it, dropping his face into his hands and quietly sobbing. _No. Nonononononononono_ \- he thought, curling in on himself. _Tina’s out there somewhere. I don’t know where she is. I know where you are, Sam. Don’t make me scared for you, too. I can’t not know. Please._ All things he wanted to say out loud, to scream after Sam, but he couldn’t make himself speak. He barely registered much of the next few seconds, but visibly relaxed when Sam slid back into place across from him, out of breath and sobbing, Mr. Schue sliding in next to him. Blaine chanced a glance at Sam, and a wave of terror hit him. _I could have lost you_ , he wanted to say, to cry and scream and hit him. But he couldn’t. Instead he stared- empty, cold, and scared, afraid that if he looked down again, Sam would be gone.

Sam’s hysterical sobbing continued, but Blaine was back to barely registering the sound. He’d heard Mr. Schue offer to leave the choir room to find Brittany, standing up and leaving Sam with Blaine and Artie. The silence had never been quite so deafening, the only sounds piercing the quiet being hysterical sobs from Kitty, Marley, or Sam. No one spoke, phones had been forgotten on the floor- except Marley’s, who was still frantically texting her mother, and Artie’s, who had been trying to contact Tina.

Blaine heard a beep, and glanced up to find Artie pointing his phone at his face. _Leave me alone, please, I don’t want to, please leave me alone._ He shook his head, dismissing Artie’s request for a statement and burying his head in his hands again. He heard the others talking around him- Ryder and Marley and Jake- before Bieste begged Artie to turn off the camera and Sam had refused a statement. Somewhere in all of it, Artie managed to ignore Bieste’s protests and turn it back on, finally getting something out of Sam, and hearing from Unique and Kitty before turning the camera on himself.

Blaine visibly tensed when a phone rang out somewhere in the choir room. _Turn it off, please turn it off, please somebody make it stop._ He glanced around the room, silently willing someone to get up and turn it off. He would do it himself- or join the others yelling at someone to do it- but he had grown comfortable in his silence, refusing to react to the chaos around him. The noise finally stopped, and someone- Ryder, he eventually noted- slammed their phone against the floor in frustration.

Mr. Schue returned minutes later with Brittany and two other students, and Blaine’s breath hitched in sobs as Sam’s presence disappeared again. _Don’t leave, please don’t leave, Tina’s still out there, please don’t leave, not you too, please_ \- Blaine’s head was pounding with worry, but Sam still stood just feet away, holding Brittany as tightly as he could manage. The police shouted the all clear through the hallways, and Blaine struggled to stand on shaky legs- they were still missing Tina, but he needed to get to Sam.

He found him clinging to Mr. Schue, thanking him for finding Brittany. “Sam!” Blaine sobbed, crashing into him in a hug.

“It’s OK,” Sam sighed, holding a shaking Blaine as tightly as he could. “Everyone’s OK, it’s OK.”

Blaine excused himself from the hug, pulling out his phone. “I’m gonna… I’m gonna call home,” he cried.

“OK,” Sam agreed, stepping away to give Blaine privacy in the corner of the room.

After the initial relief had died down, they began filing out of the choir room, Sam leading a still-shaken Blaine into the hallway after making sure Brittany was OK to leave with Kitty and the other Cheerio girl.

“I’m glad you’re OK,” Blaine sighed, almost inaudibly. Sam replied by pulling Blaine into a hug, and Blaine continued. _I could have lost you._ “I was so scared, Sam. So scared.”

“I wasn’t thinking,” Sam breathed. “Well, I was thinking. About Brittany. I’m sorry.”

Blaine and Sam stepped out into the parking lot, still swarming with students looking for their friends. _Come on_ , Blaine’s mind raced, threatening to shut itself down again as he scanned the crowd. _Come on, where is she?_

“Blaine?” Sam asked, grabbing his shoulder to steady him. “You OK? You want me to drive you home?”

“N…no,” Blaine choked out. “Not leaving.” _Where is she, I need to find her, she has to be OK, where is she?_ The unspoken words sent Blaine crashing to his knees in the middle of the parking lot.

Sam panicked, dropping to Blaine’s level. “Blaine?” he asked tentatively. “Don’t even try to tell me you’re OK, you’re not OK. You held it in for so long in there. Just because you do the broody quiet thing doesn’t mean you can’t freak out once in a while. I know I’m one to talk, the way I freaked out in there, but I want to help you, OK? Any way I can. ”

 _You can’t._ “You can’t,” Blaine finally vocalized his thoughts.

Sam placed a comforting hand on his back. “Whatever I can do, I’ll do it, OK?”

 _Find me her._ “Can you find me…”

“Blaine!” a voice interrupted his request. “Sam!”

Blaine glanced up and the dam broke, sobbing loudly and openly as he latched onto Tina’s legs the minute she ran up to them. “You’re OK. Oh my God. You’re OK,” he cried, clinging to her.

“ _You’re_ OK!” she replied, holding a hand out to Blaine so he could stand and wrapping them both in a hug. “I was so scared… I thought…”

They stood there for several minutes, crying and hugging each other. They stayed that way until the last of the students had left the parking lot. “I think we should walk home,” Sam suggested. “We’ve all been crying, and I don’t think we’re in any condition to drive home.”

“But our cars are here,” Tina replied.

“Leave them here,” Sam reasoned. “It’s not like we won’t be back for them. And who’s gonna care, Figgins? Come on.” He wrapped an arm around each of them, leading them away from the school.


	16. Applause

“Want to remind me again why we’re doing this?” Blaine asked, struggling to not trip over his Lady Gaga costume as he got into position for the performance.

Sam eyed Blaine incredulously. “Dude, I told you, I’m trying to impress Penny!”

“So… you’re pretending to be into some crazy stuff?”

“ _She’s_ into crazy stuff, dude!” Sam retorted. “I don’t wanna tell her I still like the Biebs or something like that!”

“Sam,” Blaine shook his head in amusement. “You’re a great guy. You’re charming, you’re nice, and you’re talented. You don’t need all this fake Lady Gaga stuff to impress some girl.”

“It’s also the assignment,” Sam shrugged. “The point of challenging ourselves means not doing some lame ballad or poppy song. We have to go full Gaga. Full, costumed, theatrical Gaga.”

“Fine,” Blaine conceded. “But I’m only doing this because of the assignment. If this was a thing only for Penny, I don’t know if I’d let you go through with it.”

“What are you talking about, dude? This is awesome!” Sam remarked excitedly.

People started filing into the auditorium as the performers got into place. The sounds of Lady Gaga’s “ **Applause** ” filled the room and the performance began.

After the performance, Tina bounded up to Blaine and Sam in the hallway. “What the hell was that?” she asked. “And I’m not just talking about the whole Marley thing.”

“It was crazy, right?” Sam grinned. “I think we nailed the assignment, we went full tilt Gaga.” He paused. “Well… except Marley, but Mr. Schue can’t fail us all for that, right? The rest of us were awesome.”

Tina shook her head. “It was weird. Like, really weird. Like, not you at all weird.”

“That’s the point,” Sam groaned. “We’re Katys, not Gagas. The song isn’t us, that’s literally the entire point.”

“You’re not trying to impress that nurse again, are you, Sam?” Tina asked. “She was there, and I think she thought it was super weird too.”

“No, no, she’s totally into weird stuff, she told me!” Sam fought back. “Why wouldn’t she think it was awesome, we did awesome, right?”

“No, she definitely thought it was weird,” Tina replied.

“Aw, man,” Sam sighed. “I gotta talk to her later.”

“Yeah, when you do, try mentioning that you’re making this all up to impress her,” Tina scoffed. “Come on, Sam, this isn’t you.”

“But…”

“But nothing, Sam,” Tina cut him off. “If she’s into you, she’ll like you for who you are. If she doesn’t, screw that. Normally I don’t condone you telling people you like Bieber, but in this case? You should.”

“She deserves the truth, Sam,” Blaine added.

Sam sighed. “I’m just tired of being so unlucky in love.”

Tina walked over to hug Sam. “Anyone would be lucky to have you,” she smiled. “If Nurse Penny turns you away because you’re not into the same crazy stuff she is, that’s her loss. You deserve someone who loves your every stupid little quirk. Bieber and all.”

“Tell you what,” Blaine suggested. “Go talk to her. And we’ll be right outside if things don’t go well.”


	17. Shout

“You have got to be kidding me,” Sam groaned, trudging down the hallway. “What, am I not good enough for you? Or what, Tina?”

“No, no, it’s not that,” Tina dismissed him. “It’s just… this is Prom Queen. I’m nominated for Prom Queen, Sam. If I want to win, I can’t be showing up with someone who wasn’t nominated at all.”

“…Thanks.” Sam turned and continued down the hallway.

“Oh, please, Sam,” Tina scoffed. “Stop making this about you. This is my senior prom. My chance to be queen for a day. And I need to associate with the right people to win. This has nothing to do with you, and everything to do with me and my chance to finally be worth something at this school.”

“So now I’m too much of a loser for you?” Sam raised his voice, attracting the attention of several students in the hallway. “I would have thought being in Glee club would have at least put us on a level playing field as far as loserdom goes.”

“Because you’re not even trying, are you?” Tina **shout** ed back. “You were sitting pretty when you came to this school. You could have been the top dog around here. But you chose Glee. You chose to be a loser. ”

“I guess I just wasn’t shallow enough to think popularity was important!” Sam shot back. “I guess I’m not willing to treat my friends like shit for a chance to be cool! This is my senior prom, too, Tina. And I thought I might be able to just enjoy going and spending time with a friend. ”

Sam stormed off in the other direction, not stopping until he reached the boys’ locker room, where he found Blaine rounding on the punching bag. “Mind if I have a go at it?” he asked.

“Go ahead,” Blaine nodded, stepping back from the bag and letting Sam step in. “You wanna talk, or…”

“Later,” Sam huffed, fists flying at the bag. “Gotta get this out first.”

Blaine sat back on one of the benches in the locker room, watching as Sam took out all his frustration on the punching bag. He sat patiently until Sam’s punches grew weaker, the bag stilling and Sam slumping onto a nearby bench with exhaustion. “Sam?” Blaine asked tentatively.

“Yeah?” Sam glanced up at Blaine, breathing heavily with exhaustion, his face glistening with sweat and… was he crying?

Blaine stood from the bench he was sitting on and sidled up next to Sam instead. “You OK?” Sam stayed silent and Blaine thought back over the whole day’s events. “Is this about the Tina thing?” he asked. “You know she doesn’t mean anything by it. We just have to humor her until this whole prom thing is over. Just because you’re not her official date doesn’t mean she won’t dance with you or talk to you.”

“She doesn’t want to be seen with some loser who can’t even get nominated for prom king,” Sam cried. “You can put up with her crap because she actually doesn’t mind socializing with you. You’re cool enough for her.”

Blaine sighed, pulling Sam into a half-hug from the side. “She just wants to be queen for a day, Sam. She’s not disowning you forever. Once the whole thing blows over, you’re still gonna be friends. And I’m sure she doesn’t think you’re a loser.”

“You didn’t hear her say it,” Sam muttered, barely above a whisper, so softly Blaine almost didn’t register it.

Blaine’s hand fell from Sam’s shoulder in a brief moment of surprise. “Wait, what?” he asked. “She didn’t actually call you a loser, did she?”

“Not in so many words,” Sam shrugged. “But she made it sound like I didn’t support her decision to try for prom queen. That she was trying to be something more than a glee club loser. Apparently I’ve never fought hard enough to be more than the loser I apparently am, so I’m not allowed to judge her for trying.”

Blaine sighed. “Wow, Sam, I’m… I’m sorry she said that. You wanna come over and play video games or something? Keep your mind off of things and beat up a bunch of virtual guys in the process?”

“Sure,” Sam nodded. He followed Blaine out of the locker room and continued to his house.

The week leading up to prom was awkward at best. Blaine was struggling to split time between his two best friends, who hadn’t spoken to each other all week- Tina out of stubborn avoidance, and Sam out of an awkward, avoidant sort of sadness- he couldn’t even think about trying to talk to her without hearing her in his head again- calling him a loser, walking away from their friendship. And when prom night came, they spent most of the night at a safe distance. But when Sam received the prom king and queen ballot in his hands, he couldn’t not support his two best friends- it still hurt him to think of her as anything but.

That was why, when the results were read, he was one of the first to cheer, one of the first to run for her when she fled the stage, dripping with slushie. He’d show her he still supported her no matter what.

And when she stepped out, wearing Kitty’s borrowed dress, he stepped forward and crowned her, holding his arms out for a hug she rushed into. They stayed that way for a while- hugging and crying and not wanting to let go.

“I’m sorry,” Tina sobbed against Sam. “I’m sorry I treated you like I did, and then avoided you like I did, and this means nothing to me if I’m losing friends because of it.”

“Tee,” Sam sobbed into her. “I always supported you, I want you to know that, OK? I voted for you tonight, and it… it wasn’t supposed to end like this, I voted for you as a friend. I don’t want you to think I knew anything about this, I voted for you because I meant it. I love you, Tina Cohen-Chang. I hated not talking to you, I hated being weird around you… ”

“I’m sorry.”

“Shh, no,” Sam quieted her. “You’ve said enough. Now how about you get yourself back out on that stage and accept this crown? I loved crowning you and all, but let’s go show everyone else how little you care about their stupid prank. I’ll put my best bitchface on for that Cheerio bitch.” He glanced across the room and muttered a “…Sorry, Kitty.”

“No, screw sisterhood, I hate her too,” Kitty scoffed. “Let’s go show her, Tina.” She opened the choir room door and held it. Tina linked arms with Blaine and Sam and they walked out together, ready to come out on the other side stronger for it.


	18. Bubble

Blaine stood in the middle of the main living space of the loft, awkwardly holding the pair of underwear Sam had thrown at him. He had to clear out while Kurt angrily ripped up the tape he’d carefully laid out for the workspace, so he disappeared out into the hallway, tossing the underwear onto the couch before stepping out. He turned the corner to find Sam on the phone.

“Love you, bye,” Sam finished, hanging up the phone. He turned to Blaine. “Just called the family about the modeling gig, they’re super excited.”

“That’s great, Sam!” Blaine exclaimed. “Have you called anyone else yet? We should call Tina.”

“Yes!” Sam agreed excitedly, scrolling through his contacts to find Tina’s name.

“Hello?” Tina answered.

“Tee! Hey! It’s Sam and Blaine, you’re on speaker,” Sam announced.

“Hi,” Blaine added, letting Tina know he was there.

“Hey, guys, what’s up?” Tina asked.

“Guess what, Tina?” Sam asked excitedly. Before waiting for an answer, he continued. “I just booked my first modeling gig!”

Tina screamed, and Sam held the phone a good distance away, although the scream was distorted and broken from coming through the speaker. He brought the phone closer when Tina started talking normally again. “Oh my God, Sam!” she shrieked. “That’s so exciting! What’s it for?”

“ **Bubble**!” Sam replied. Tina’s silence was met with a sigh of exasperation. “Bubble? Booty contouring underwear for men? Come on…”

“Never heard of it,” Tina shrugged.

“Neither had I,” Blaine commented with a laugh. “Sam brought me a free pair, though.”

“That’s…. great!” Tina forced out. “I never thought you needed a padded ass, Blaine.”

“You’ve made that clear,” Blaine laughed. “Plenty of times.”

“Oh, shut it,” she scolded him. “I can’t help it, your ass is fantastic.”

“Besides,” Blaine continued, ignoring Tina’s comment. “I never said I needed them. They were free from Sam. And free stuff is cool.”

“Fine,” Tina admitted defeat. “Sam, you better call me when the photos go up. I want to show all my friends here that I’m friends with an underwear model.”

“Will do, Tee,” Sam smiled. “And you better come see us soon, OK? I miss you.”

“I’ll try,” Tina replied. “I love you guys, see you soon.”

Sam hung up the phone and started back toward the loft. Blaine sighed. “I’m not sure it’s safe for me to go back in yet, Kurt was pretty mad about the workspace thing.”

“Just try on the underwear,” Sam suggested. “He’ll be all over you in no time.”


	19. Angel

Snow was falling outside, and the students of McKinley High were far beyond caring about their classes. Mr. Storie had given up teaching Blaine and Sam’s math class, and was instead engaging the students in heated chess tournaments. Next door, however, where Tina sat in Mrs. Zakarian’s English class, she soldiered on through her students’ disinterest.

The PA system crackled to life, and Mrs. Zakarian groaned. Sue Sylvester’s voice came over the loudspeaker, all the students turning toward it hoping for a distraction. “Attention McKinley idiots,” she began.

“How dare she interrupt my teaching,” Mrs. Zakarian added.

“Due to the heavy snow, the Board of Education has chosen to close all schools in Lima for the remainder of the day,” Sue continued. “While I’d prefer to lock you all in and stage a live action Hunger Games, the Board has also informed me that doing so would nullify my current contract as school principal. Disappointingly, you’re all free to go.”

Before Sue was even half done with her announcement, every student had stopped paying attention and grabbed their things, running for the classroom doors.

“She can’t do that!” Mrs. Zakarian shrieked. “I decide when you leave my class!” The students ignored her and left the classroom, filling the hallways with excited buzzing.

Tina ran up to Blaine and Sam as she passed Mr. Storie’s classroom and they walked to their lockers together. “Z’s playing dictator, trying to act like she has the power to keep us in there, even though the Board of Ed are the ones sending us home,” she groaned. “I swear I’m gonna be 80 and still talking about how much I hate her.”

Blaine laughed. “Um… I beat Storie in a chess game?” he offered. “Rematch on Friday. You should skip Z’s class and come watch.”

“Yeah, while you were busy with that, I watched Stoner Brett build a snowman inside…” Sam laughed. “You know how he always sits by the window? He had it open and he was bringing snow inside by the handfuls- building a little snowman in the corner of his desk.”

“Impressive,” Blaine said, smirking at the thought.

“Yeah, it kind of was,” Sam agreed. “Hey, you guys wanna come with me? I know we usually walk home, but Mom and Dad are still at work so I have to go pick up Stevie and Stacey from school.”

“Sure,” Tina agreed. She shoved the homework that she’d already gotten from her first three periods into her bag and stood. The three of them left the school soon after, and started toward the elementary school across town.

Upon reaching the elementary school, they found Stevie and Stacey running around in the front yard of the school, chucking snowballs at each other. “Hey, you two!” Sam greeted them. “You’re stuck with me today, Mom and Dad are still at work.” Stacey replied by packing a snowball and throwing it square at Sam’s chest. “Oh, you wound me, Stace. I’m gonna get you for that!”

Stacey shrieked, running away, but Sam was too fast for her. He lifted her up and tossed her into a particularly high pile of snow. Meanwhile, Blaine was letting Stevie attack him with snowball after snowball, occasionally throwing one and missing on purpose. If there was one thing Blaine could play up for kids, it was his natural silliness. Tina stood and watched them run around her, Stevie now running across the schoolyard to escape Blaine, who was giving chase. Before she could react, Stevie was barreling into Tina’s legs, sending her sliding backwards on the icy pathway, shrieking as she hit the snow behind her.

“Stevie!” Sam scolded, running over to them. “Tina, are you OK?”

Tina laughed from where she’d fallen. “Yeah, the snow’s soft. You should join me,” she smiled, moving her arms to make a snow **angel**.

Sam sighed in relief. “Thank God,” he said. “Stevie, she could have hit her head on the ice! Don’t do that!”

“Sam, don’t yell at him,” Tina sighed. She reached her hand up, beckoning him toward her. “I mean it, get down here, make snow angels with me.” Stevie, and Stacey, who had followed Sam over, both immediately plopped down next to her and started making snow angels. “See, all the cool kids are doing it,” she teased Sam and Blaine.

“You mean all the dorks,” Sam teased back.

“Aw, come on, Sam, why not?” Blaine asked, jumping into a pile of snow before joining Tina and the kids in their snow angel making endeavors.

“OK, I lied,” Sam laughed. “Now it’s all the dorks.”

“I swear I will wrestle you to the ground, Sam Evans,” Tina scolded him. “Get down here.”

“Yeah, come on Sammy!” Stacey called out.

Sam sighed. “OK, fine, I can’t say no to you, Stace.” He threw himself backwards into the snow, arms spread out. After a minute or so, he stood. “OK, I promised I’d get you guys home, so what do you say we continue this in our backyard?”

Stevie and Stacey immediately jumped up, Blaine and Tina following. “Can we get hot chocolate after?” Stacey begged.

“Of course,” Sam smiled, messing her hair.

“Can we come too?” Blaine fake pouted, giving Sam puppy dog eyes.

“Shut it, you,” Sam playfully whacked him. “You’re impossible to get rid of.”


	20. Crutch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...yeah, I did it again.

Tina sat poring over her homework when her phone rang. She reached over to pick it up and laughed at the silly picture Blaine had taken as his caller ID. “Hey, Blaine, what’s up?”

“Tina?” Blaine replied. “Don’t… don’t freak out, OK?”

“Well, I’m not making any promises now that you’ve said that,” Tina sighed, raising an eyebrow. “What did you do?”

“Can you… can you come pick me up?” Blaine asked.

“Of course, where are you?” Tina asked, standing and heading out toward her car.

“Um…” Blaine replied sheepishly. “Lima Memorial Hospital?”

“What?” Tina shrieked. “Oh my God, are you OK? What happened? What did you do? Oh my God, are you OK?”

Blaine laughed. “Tee, I told you not to freak out.”

“Normally, people don’t follow ‘don’t freak out’ with ‘oh, by the way, I’m in the hospital’, Blaine,” Tina panicked. “I’m on my way, OK? I’ve got you on speaker phone, talk to me. Tell me what happened.”

“Tee, relax, OK?” Blaine sighed. “I’m gonna be fine, I’m all checked out, I’m just waiting for a ride home. Please don’t worry about me, you’re driving, I don’t want you getting into an accident.”

“Blaine.” Tina was firm in her determination. “Tell. Me. What. Happened.”

Blaine sighed. “It’s stupid. I was goofing off with Sam and my knee twisted wrong. Sam offered to drive me here, but I couldn’t really move without pain and he couldn’t carry me, so one visit from the paramedics and one ambulance ride later, and we’re stuck without a ride home.”

“Sam?” Tina asked. “Sam’s with you?”

“Yeah,” Blaine answered, glancing over to where Sam sat waiting with him. “He’s here.”

Tina sighed with relief. “I’m glad you’re not alone,” she said. “But the fact that you needed an ambulance isn’t really making me feel any better about this.”

“Tee, relax,” Blaine sighed. “I promise. When you get here you’ll see that it’s not that bad. Nothing’s broken or anything.” He paused. “I should let you go, you’re distracted enough. I’ll see you when you get here, OK?”

“OK,” Tina tentatively agreed. She hung up the phone and continued toward the hospital, going much faster than she probably should have. She parked her car in the emergency room’s parking lot, jumping out and racing to the front desk. “I’m here to pick up Blaine Anderson?”

The receptionist led her to the back, ushering her into one of the exam rooms. Sam stood against a wall, chatting with Blaine, who waited in a hospital-issue wheelchair. Sam glanced up first. “Oh, Tina, you’re here!” he exclaimed, Blaine looking over after him.

“How did you get here so fast?” Blaine asked.

“I… may have run a stop sign or four,” Tina admitted, running over to Blaine and wrapping him in a hug. “I thought you told me it wasn’t bad,” she worried.

“It isn’t bad, Tee, I promise,” Blaine reassured her.

“You’re in a wheelchair!”

Blaine laughed. “Tina, it’s fine. I’ll be fine. The chair is just hospital policy. I have to ride in it from here to the door, then I can use the **crutch** es the rest of the way.” He nodded toward Sam, who stood against the wall next to a pair of crutches.

“Still sorry about this, dude,” Sam muttered sheepishly.

Blaine shook his head. “It’s fine, Sam, just warn me next time you decide to jump on my back so I can balance first.”

Tina busted up laughing. “Wait, that’s how you hurt yourself?” she laughed. “This big dork literally jumped on you?”

“Hey!” Sam snapped indignantly, stopping short when a nurse came into the room.

“The receptionist told me your ride was here?”

Tina raised her hand in a wave to the nurse. “That would be me,” she confirmed. The nurse got behind Blaine and began pushing the wheelchair out of the room, Sam following carrying the crutches, Tina behind him. Tina broke away from the group once outside, sprinting off to her car to bring it around.

Once the car was parked at the entrance, Tina got out, switching places with Sam. She held the crutches while Sam helped the nurse guide Blaine into a standing position. She handed them off to Blaine before taking the nurse’s place next to him, helping him over to her car. The nurse disappeared back inside as they settled Blaine into the backseat, making him comfortable before hopping in the front and driving him home.

“My car’s already at Blaine’s, so I’m fine from there,” Sam spoke up.

Tina scoffed. “You’re leaving? Because I thought we were all just gonna stay at Blaine’s. Make a night of it.”

Sam sighed. “Fine,” he said. “Another Disney movie night, or…?”

“We could do scary movies,” Tina suggested.

“No!” Blaine shouted from the backseat. “I mean, what if I get scared and I jump and it jerks my knee wrong again?”

Tina shook her head. “Fine, no scary movies tonight. But you owe me.”

“Owe you for what?” Blaine asked.

“Scaring me half to death with that phone call,” she playfully snapped. “But no really, I’m glad you’re OK, and I’m glad you weren’t alone and Sam was there. Even if he is the one who did this to you.”

“Hey!” Sam sputtered. “That’s not nice, it was an accident!”

Tina pulled up in front of Blaine’s and the pair got out of the front seats, both moving to help Blaine from the back. They helped him up the stairs and into the house, crashing on the couch together.


	21. Blind

Sam walked into the school, stopping at his locker to drop off his bag. Tina’s locker was next to his, and she stood at it, helplessly running her hand up and down the pile of books. “Daydreaming, Tee?” he joked, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Tina startled. “Damn it, Sam, don’t do that!” she scolded him. “You know I can’t see you there!”

Sam laughed. “What did you do, go **blind**?”

“Yeah. For today, anyway,” Tina turned to face Sam, brandishing a red-tipped cane and pointing to the blindfold across her eyes.

“What the hell made you blind for the day?” Sam asked, his voice rising into a slight panic.

Tina laughed, shaking her head. “Have you been falling asleep in homeroom again? We’ve literally talked about this. Disability awareness day?”

“Disability awareness day…” Sam repeated. “So… you didn’t actually go blind?”

“No, Sam,” Tina sighed. “I’m not actually blind. If I was actually blind, what the hell would I be wearing a blindfold for?”

Sam shrugged. “To keep your eyes out of the sun while they heal from whatever blinded you?”

“You’re ridiculous,” Tina replied. “I’m fine. If you were actually listening to the announcements in homeroom for the past week, you’d know that Figgins’ office is stocked with stuff for the day, so we can live out the day with a disability, try to understand what it’s like. Something about being inspired by the Glee Club doing Proud Mary for Artie… not sure where Figgins got his time machine that he’s only caring about that years later, but we’ll take it. It’s acknowledgement. Or something.”

“You think Artie would teach me some neat wheelchair tricks?” Sam mused aloud. “I wasn’t here when you guys did Proud Mary.”

Tina shook her head. “It’s not as fun as you’d think,” she sighed. “You can go ahead, I’m sure Artie wouldn’t mind showing you some things, but I give it 5 minutes before you’re flat on your back in the middle of the hallway from trying to pop wheelies.”

“Would it be cheating if I got up after I fell over?” Sam asked.

“I think you’re allowed to do that,” Tina shrugged. But they probably don’t want you cheating too much, for the sake of having the experience… try not to fall over, and you won’t have to think about it.”

Sam laughed. “Telling me to try not to fall over is like telling a dog not to bark, and that’s when I’m standing up.”

Tina moved to whack Sam on the shoulder, slightly misjudging and swatting him on the chest instead. “Go get a chair, Sam,” she dismissed him. “If you hurry up and get back here before first bell, maybe you can help me figure out which books I’m supposed to take where.”

“They won’t even let you look for things like that?”

“Cheating, Sam. Now go.”

Sam walked to Principal Figgins’ office, where he ran into Blaine, who stood there shirtless and wrapped in duct tape.

“What are you supposed to be?” Sam asked, suppressing a laugh at Blaine’s current state.

“They’ve taped my right arm at my side, it’s like I don’t have one for the day,” he explained. “I could probably use a little help getting my shirt back on, actually.”

Sam grabbed Blaine’s shirt off a nearby chair, guiding it over Blaine’s head and watching as Blaine put his free arm through it. He turned to Figgins’ receptionist. “Here to sign out a wheelchair for Disability Day?” He turned back to Blaine. “Figured Artie could teach me some cool wheelchair tricks or something.”

“Do you have a death wish?” Blaine asked. “Might want to master steering before you ask Artie about tricks.”

“It can’t be that hard, a bunch of the other Glee kids did it for Artie before we were here,” Sam retorted.

The receptionist came around from the storage area with one of the wheelchairs, and Sam slung his backpack over the handles before climbing in. “Walk with you back to the lockers?” Blaine asked.

“Sure,” Sam replied. “Sure you don’t want a ride?” he gestured to his lap. Blaine replied by whacking Sam in the shoulder. Sam shrugged. “Suit yourself.” They worked their way back toward their lockers and Sam stopped short in front of the art room. “Actually, you go ahead, I have to get something. Tina’s probably still trying to figure out her books, she’ll need someone if I’m not back in time.”

“Figure out her books?” Blaine asked.

“She’s blind for the day,” Sam explained. “Couldn’t figure out which book was which. She asked me to help but she made me get the chair first.”

“OK,” Blaine agreed. “If you don’t get back in time, I’ll see you at lunch?”

“Yeah,” Sam nodded. He turned the chair and rolled into the art room, where Mr. Castillo sat at his desk, reading a magazine.

Mr. Castillo glanced up. “Hello, Sam,” he greeted him. “Here to work more on your project?”

Sam shook his head. “No, I just… needed a few materials for something outside of class. Disability Day project,” he explained, wheeling over to the drawers. He opened a few of them, pulling out a piece of felt, construction paper, aluminum foil, a foam board, a swatch of fabric, a few small round raised stickers, and a roll of tape. “Thanks, Mr. C.,” Sam nodded toward him as he wheeled himself out of the room, the supplies on his lap.  

Sam rolled down the hallway, finally stopping at his locker, where Tina and Blaine still sat, waiting for the bell to ring. “Hey,” he greeted them, pulling up next to Tina. “Back in time. You get your books sorted out?”

Tina shook her head. “I’m just gonna bring them all and ask someone in each class.”

“That’s ridiculous,” Sam replied, lifting Tina’s bag from the floor, the sheer weight of it sending him flying forward out of the chair as it slid out from under him, landing himself on top of Tina, who shrieked.

“Sam, did you just fall?”

“Yeah, because of your damn bag,” Sam muttered. “Probably should have put the brakes on first. Am I cheating if I get up or can we count the first bell as the official start?”

Blaine laughed. “If I had both arms today, I’d help, but I think you can cheat just this once.”

Sam nodded, reaching back and grabbing the chair, putting the brakes on and hoisting himself into it. “There,” he said. “Didn’t stand up. Only half-cheated.” He pulled Tina’s bag closer to him without lifting it. “Now about all these books, there’s no way you’re carrying this around, it’s too heavy.” He waved the pile of supplies in the air. “What class is first?”

“Math,” Tina replied.

Sam found Tina’s math text, notebook, and folder, and taped a piece of the construction paper to each. “Next?”

“Science.” He taped the foil to the corresponding books.

“Next?”

“Gym, then lunch, no books. English with you guys after.” He stuck the stickers to the English books.

“Got it. Then art with me, right?”

“Yeah.” He took the fabric and taped it to the sketchbook in her bag.

“Lit with both of you after that, then history,” Tina continued, Sam taping the foam to the literature books, and the felt to the history books.

“Done,” Sam smiled. “All your books are texture-coded now. You don’t have to hurt yourself carrying them all.”

“Thanks, Sam,” Tina smiled.

“Let me call you, I’ll leave which one’s which as a message so you can just check your voicemail if you forget.”

Tina fumbled to find Sam’s hand, grabbing it and squeezing it. “I love you, thank you,” she said.

“Let’s get the rest of these books out of here,” Sam suggested. “What’s your combo, I’ll put them back for you.”

Tina gave her locker combo to Sam, blushing profusely. “Thanks for opening my locker, I already used a cheat to do it myself this morning before either of you got here.”

“And you told me no cheating? You little hypocrite, Tina Cohen-Chang!” Sam scoffed at her. He pulled out his phone and dialed Tina’s, letting it go to voicemail as he put the books away, describing each one.

“And done,” he smiled, filing the last away and closing Tina’s locker. “First two classes are still in your bag, everything else is away.”

“Got it, thanks, Sam,” Tina replied.

The early bell rang, and Blaine leaped up. “I know we like to hang around, but we might need all 5 minutes to get to class today,” he mused. He reached out a hand in front of Tina. “Need a hand, Tee?” he asked. “Right in front of you.” Tina reached ahead, finding Blaine’s hand and pulling herself to a standing position. She pulled out her borrowed cane and started down the hallway with Blaine and Sam behind her.

One distinct crash of metal on metal later, and Tina was dissolving into hysterical laughter. “Sam, you just hit a locker, didn’t you?”

Sam sheepishly nodded. “Maybe?”

“I can’t wait to tell Artie you wanted to do tricks.”


	22. Hostage

“I want to go home,” Sam sighed. “I mean, we’ve walked around the mall at least ten times already and haven’t bought a thing.”

“Well, you can’t,” Tina stuck her tongue out at her best friend. “I’m not done, and I’m your ride home, so unless you want to walk…”

“Not happening,” Sam interrupted.

“Exactly,” Tina smirked, grabbing Sam’s hand and dragging him into a store.

“Oh, so we’re finally going somewhere?” Sam asked.

“It’s not like I can afford anything in here,” Tina replied. “I just kind of… come in here to look at stuff. Maybe someday, you know?”

Sam shook his head. “I don’t understand girls. Guys just get what they came for and leave. You’re literally holding me **hostage** to do nothing but look at things.”

“I am not holding you hostage,” Tina scoffed.

“I’m literally not allowed to leave, that’s exactly what you’re doing,” Sam replied.

“Fine,” Tina retorted playfully. “Is there anything you need to get then?”

Sam shook his head. “I just came to hang out with you really,” he admitted. “But I guess a quick look around the comic book store before we go wouldn’t hurt.”

“Done,” Tina agreed, following Sam through the mall to the comic book store.

Sam’s face lit up immediately as they entered the store, and Tina choked back a laugh. “Dork,” she teased him, elbowing him in the ribs.

“Hey!” Sam shot back. “This is the one store where I get to do what you just dragged me around a whole mall ten times to do.”

“And you didn’t think to come in here any of those ten times?”

“Well… no,” Sam admitted. “There’s nothing I really want.” He paused and thought about it. “Well, nothing I want that I can afford, anyway. I don’t do that ‘staring longingly at things I’ll never buy’ thing.”

“Like what?” Tina asked.

Sam led her over to a display of Marvel Comics collectible figures. “This,” he pointed one out. “It’s a special edition Captain America, super rare. It’s been sitting here for months, no one’s bought it.”

Tina picked up the box, turning it over in her hands and gasping at the price tag. “Sam…”

“I know,” Sam nodded sadly. “Is this how you feel looking at those Louboutin bags or whatever?”

Tina shook her head. “Louboutin is shoes. Louis Vuitton is bags.”

“Same thing,” Sam shrugged.

“Not really but…” Tina paused as her phone went off in her pocket. She glanced at the caller ID and smiled. “Go read a comic or something, I’m gonna take this call. Could be a while, go enjoy yourself.”

Sam groaned and retreated to a corner of the store as Tina picked up her phone. “Hey, Blaine,” she greeted him. “All systems go?”

“All systems go,” Blaine confirmed. “20 minutes?”

Tina shook her head. “Give it 25 or 30… what’s your take on blowing a couple hundred dollars on a piece of plastic?”

“Is it a collectible piece of plastic?” Blaine joked.

“Maybe?” Tina admitted. “I think I’m just gonna go for it.” She walked up to the counter and placed it down, closing her eyes as she handed over her credit card. “The damage is done, oh god, Blaine, the damage is done,” she cringed.

“If you just did what I think you just did, part of me thinks you’re insane, the other part of me thinks you’re the sweetest person ever,” Blaine laughed. “See you soon?”

“Yeah,” Tina confirmed. She took the bag from the counter and walked back toward Sam. “Hey,” she called out. “Ready when you are.”

Sam stood and rejoined Tina, eyeing the bag she was swinging at her side. “Ooh, what did you find for yourself?” he asked.

Tina smiled, holding out the bag toward Sam. “Wrong,” she told him, holding it open for him to look inside. “Happy birthday.”

Sam looked into the bag, then back at Tina. “You didn’t,” he whispered. “But... it was so much…”

“I know,” Tina sighed. “My bank account is crying right now. But you said you wanted it, and I hadn’t gotten you anything yet… this trip may have been an excuse for that,” she admitted, handing over the bag.

“I just…” Sam paused, speechless. “Wow. Thank you, Tina.”

“Anytime, Sam,” Tina smiled. “Well maybe not for that amount of money anytime soon, but really. Let’s get out of here, OK?”

“Finally,” Sam laughed.

They left the mall, climbing into Tina’s car and heading off toward Sam’s house. “Hey,” he said, climbing out of the car when they reached his house. “Did you wanna come in for a sec?”

“Sure,” Tina smiled, getting out of the car after him.

Sam opened his front door, and was met with a resounding “SURPRISE!” as all of his friends and family emerged from various corners of the room to celebrate his birthday.

“Happy birthday, man!” Blaine bounded up to him. “So I hear you got the coolest birthday gift ever.”

“She’s crazy,” Sam shook his head. “You saw how much that special edition Cap was…”

“Yeah, part of me thinks she’s crazy too,” Blaine admitted. “But you deserve it. Sorry you had to spend forever at the mall though, I know it’s not your thing. But she wanted to get you something, and I needed someone to keep you away from here while we set this all up.”

“I think we circled the mall at least ten times,” Sam groaned.

Blaine stifled a laugh. “I’m sorry I’m laughing,” he choked out. “She had to keep you out until I called, I’m sorry it took so long…”

“It’s fine, I guess,” Sam smiled. “Now that I know what it was all for.”

“I won’t do that to you ever again,” Tina laughed from behind them. “Promise.”

“Not even for future birthdays?” Sam fake-pouted.

Tina shook her head. “They’re not surprise parties anymore if you expect them every year.”


	23. Ambulance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...I need to stop torturing these poor babies. This one is the beginning of a 5-part arc. (23, 24, 25, 26, and 27)

“That was an awesome movie,” Blaine gushed as he hopped into the driver’s seat of his car, Sam running around the other side calling shotgun.

“Dude, I’m telling you, Michael Bay can do no wrong,” Sam replied. “I mean, the effects alone make the movie.”

Tina laughed, climbing in behind Blaine. “You two are so lucky I love you,” she sighed dramatically. “That I’m willing to go to these movies with you when they’re really nothing but two hours of gratuitous explosions…”

“Hey!” Blaine interrupted her, a fake look of offense on his face as he turned the key and pulled out of the theater’s parking lot. “How dare you, Michael Bay is a genius. Even if he did pass up on Coop for that role that one time.”

“Don’t act so offended, or I’m not buying your ICEE next time,” Tina scolded him.

“I don’t need your ICEE, I can buy my own!” Blaine retorted, laughing as he turned onto the main road.

Tina whacked the back of his seat, slumping in defeat. “Whatever. Explosions are cool I guess. From a creative filmmaking standpoint, anyway.” She stopped herself. “Maybe I’ve been hanging out with Artie too much.”

“Tee, you’ve never been to a movie like this with Artie,” Blaine reminded her. “And I think he’s even worse than us when it comes to Michael Bay. Say what you want, but the man is captivating.”

He turned slightly to acknowledge her, when Sam grabbed at his arm. “Blaine, look out!” Sam screeched. Blaine quickly focused back onto the road, only to find a truck only inches from them and still coming.

Sam curled up in his seat, hands protecting his face. Tina could do nothing but stare out the window. Blaine swerved to avoid the truck, but couldn’t make it in time, and his car was thrown to the side of the road, the truck speeding away.

Sam was the first to come to his senses, pulling his hands away from his face to survey the damage around him. Glancing to the driver’s side, he saw nothing but broken glass and twisted metal, painting his two best friends in their own blood.

“Shit,” he hissed, turning in his seat to reach over toward Blaine. He hissed at the stinging from the cuts and bruises covering his body and the disorienting, throbbing pain in his head. He shook Blaine’s shoulder. “Blaine?” he tentatively asked. Getting no response, he turned to Tina, shaking her by the leg. “Tee?” he asked. “Come on…” She didn’t respond either and Sam slumped back into his seat, his head pounding.

He closed his eyes and willed the pain away, forcing himself to push through and help his friends. He pulled out his cell phone and dialed the emergency number.

“911, what’s your emergency?”

“We were in an accident,” Sam panicked into the phone. “Me and… and my two best friends. Someone hit us. Driver’s side… they both… I wasn’t…”

“Sir, you’re going to have to stay calm, just focus on my voice, OK? My name is Linda.”

“Sam,” Sam replied. “I’m Sam.”

“OK, Sam,” Linda continued. “Are you hurt at all?”

Sam groaned. “Cut up, bruised, head is killing me… might actually be concussed…”

“OK, Sam, now I know it’s going to be hard for you to focus, but you have to focus for me, OK? Can you calmly tell me what happened?”

“Someone hit us,” Sam explained. Driver’s side, both my friends were sitting on that side, they got the worst of it. They’re both unconscious, I tried shaking both of them awake… nothing.”

“There are three of you?” Linda asked.

“Yeah,” Sam confirmed.

“I’ve plotted your location with GPS, I’ll dispatch some **ambulance** s your way as soon as possible,” she told Sam. “Can you give me some personal information for the dispatch records, Sam?”

Sam recounted his own information and Blaine’s from memory, reaching back and digging through Tina’s purse for her ID to relay hers to Linda- he’d remember Tina’s birthday one of these days.

As Sam was recounting the information, the first police car and ambulance arrived at the scene. “Someone’s here,” he told her.

“OK, Sam, I’m going to let you go now so you can talk to them, OK?” Linda asked.

“Yeah, good,” Sam said. “Thanks.”

Sam hung up the phone as the police officer approached his window. “Sir?” the officer asked. “I’m Officer Charles Deaton of the Lima police department. Can you tell me what happened here?”

“A truck…” Sam trailed off. “It hit us and then it just left and my friends aren’t waking up and I’m scared and my head is pounding and…” He started to cry against his better judgment; he knew it would make the pain in his head even worse.

“Can I have your name, sir?” Officer Deaton asked.

“Sam. Sam Evans.”

“OK, Sam,” he continued. “Are you hurt at all?”

“Head is killing me,” Sam groaned. “Probably concussed.”

“OK, Sam, can you focus for me?” Officer Deaton asked. Sam nodded. “The other ambulances just pulled up, there’s going to be a lot of questions, a lot of chaos. I’ll be right outside if you need my help fielding any questions, OK?”

A medic walked over and Officer Deaton turned to him. Gesturing to Sam, he spoke for him. “This is Sam Evans, suspected concussion, his two friends’ conditions are unknown, they’ve been unconscious.”

The medic nodded and stepped closer to the car. “Hi, Sam, I’m Steve.”

“Hey, my brother’s name is Stevie,” Sam laughed halfheartedly, cringing from the pain the vibrations caused in his head.

“Do you think you can try to step out of the car for me, Sam? I can help you over to the ambulance.”

Sam shook his head, gesturing toward Blaine and Tina. “Don’t wanna leave them here.”

“They’ll be right behind you,” Steve reassured him.

“No, take them first,” Sam insisted. “I play football, I can handle a concussion, please help them.”

The medics from the other ambulances soon joined Steve at Sam’s window, and Steve turned to address them. “This one’s Sam,” he pointed to Sam. “He has a suspected concussion… I’ll take him.” He turned back toward Sam. “Sam, can we have some background information on your friends?”

Sam nodded. “This is Blaine, his ID’s in his wallet, back pocket. This is Tina, hers is in her purse. Numbers are all in my cell if you need to contact families right now… under their last names. Anderson for Blaine, Cohen-Chang for Tina.”

“They’ll take care of that at the hospital,” Steve confirmed. “If that’s everything, you can come with me now, the other medics are here for your friends, it’s taken care of, are you OK to come with me now?”

Sam shook his head, looking back at Blaine and Tina laying unconscious in their seats. He grabbed one of Blaine’s limp hands and one of Tina’s, holding them as tightly as he could. “I love you guys,” Sam choked out, the tears spilling over freely now, holding back be damned. “Please be OK, I need you both to be OK, please?”

A hand on Sam’s shoulder grounded him. Sam sighed, nodding to Steve and loosening his grip on his friends’ hands. “I have to go now,” he told them. “But they’re gonna take care of you and I’ll see you both soon, OK?” He dropped their hands and turned his tear-streaked face to Steve. “OK,” he told him. “I can go.”

Steve helped Sam from the car, guiding him toward the first ambulance. Sam quickly climbed onto the stretcher in the back, laying down across it curled in on himself.

And without the chaos of the scene, without the sight of his two best friends laying unconscious around him, without people bothering him for information, Sam closed his eyes and gave in to the unconsciousness that quickly overtook him.


	24. Think

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part 2 of a 5-part arc (23, 24, 25, 26, and 27). Sam-centric.

Sam groaned and turned over in his bed at Lima Memorial Hospital. He blinked against the harsh light and pulled an arm up over his eyes to shield them.

“Sam!” a voice started in the corner of the room and quickly became closer. “Oh, thank God, Sam.” Mary Evans stood at her son’s bedside, immediately grabbing onto one of his hands. “Don’t you ever scare us like that again.”

Sam blinked confusedly at his mother. “What…. What happened?” he slurred, his voice exhausted.

“You were in an accident, Sam,” Mary explained. “You’ve been out for hours. You have a concussion, so now that you’re conscious again, they’re going to have to wake you up every few hours. ”

Sam groaned and closed his eyes, and Mary sighed. “I know you probably want to do nothing but sleep right now, but your father just took Stevie and Stacey to the cafeteria a little while ago,” she explained. “Think you can keep yourself awake until they’re back?”

“I dunno,” Sam groaned. “Talk to me or something. What happened?”

“You were on your way home from the movies and a truck hit you,” Mary explained. “Drove off, too, the coward.”

Sam frowned. “I don’t even remember seeing a movie…” he trailed off.

“It was that new Michael Bay one you’ve been so excited for,” Mary told him.

“Oh, OK,” Sam smiled. “So when I’m out of here I totally have an excuse to go again. Michael Bay’s a god among men. Maybe I can drag Blaine along with me next time too.”

Mary glanced awkwardly away from Sam. “Blaine was with you,” she told him, her voice barely above a whisper.

Sam’s eyes widened and he quickly closed them again, blocking out the stark white light that made his head ache. “Please tell me you’re gonna tell me he took his own car,” Sam begged.

Mary shook her head. “You were all in his,” she told him. “He was driving, the truck hit his side of the car.”

“What’s that supposed to mean, all?” Sam asked. “All who? Did Artie come too? Artie loves Michael Bay movies, more than me, I think. Would be kind of cruel of the world to get him into another car accident, though…”

“Artie wasn’t there, Tina was,” Mary sighed.

“Tee?” Sam gasped. “Tee doesn’t like those movies, what was she doing there? I didn’t convince her to go, did I? If I made her go and then this happened, I’m never gonna forgive myself… are they OK?”

Mary shook her head. “I don’t know, Sam, I’m sorry... I’ve been in here with you and I haven’t heard anything.”

“I wish I could remember,” Sam sighed. “It hurts to **think**.”

“It’s normal to lose a bit of memory when you’re concussed, Sam,” Mary reassured him. “I could go check on them if you want.”

“No,” Sam muttered sleepily. “Don’t wanna be alone. Wait til Dad’s back.”

“OK, just try to rest until he’s back, OK?” Mary asked, pulling Sam’s covers up around him. Sam nodded, curling into himself on the bed.

The next thing Sam knew, he was being shaken awake by a hand on his shoulder. “Hey, Sam,” Dwight Evans smiled down at him. “Glad to see you awake. Your mother’s gone out to check on your friends for you.”

Sam nodded and sat up slightly, allowing himself to see to the foot of the bed, where Stevie and Stacey stood, staring sheepishly at him. “Come here, you two,” he called them over, patting the spaces on the bed on either side of him. “Climb on up.”

Stevie and Stacey climbed into the bed with Sam and he wrapped an arm around each of them, hugging them close. “I’m happy you’re OK, Sammy,” Stacey cried, nestling into Sam’s side.

“Like I’d ever leave you guys?” Sam joked, patting them each on the head in an attempt to make light of the situation for them. “I wouldn’t do that to you.”

They sat in silence, hugging and cuddling each other until Mary returned. Sam looked up when she walked back into the room. “Mom?” he asked. “How are they?”

“I spoke to both of their parents in the waiting room,” Mary explained. “Blaine’s still unconscious, but the preliminary scans showed some minor nerve damage. Doesn’t look like anything that won’t sort itself out in a short amount of time, but they’re waiting until he’s awake to assess it further. Tina’s still in surgery.”

“Surgery?” Sam looked horrified. “For what?”

“Reconstruction,” Mary told him. “She broke some ribs and they had to put them back in place.”

“Ouch,” Sam cringed at the thought. “It sounds…” he paused. “It sounds… not good,” he admitted. “But at the same time, we’re all still alive, so…”

Mary rounded on Sam, wrapping him in a hug. “You scared us, Sam,” she admitted. “Then we got here, and you were OK… and all I could do was pray that Blaine and Tina were OK too… I know you would have a hard time dealing with it if they weren’t.”

Sam shrugged. “Kind of makes me glad I can’t remember,” he sighed. “If I knew how bad things were in the moment, I’d probably have given myself a heart attack.” He paused for a second, thinking it over. “I want to see them. I need to see them to believe they’re OK. I just…” he trailed off.

“I want to see them too!” Stacey exclaimed through her tears, still curled up tightly next to Sam. “I like Tina, she’s nice.”

“And Blaine likes to read comic books with me,” Stevie chimed in.

Sam laughed, pulling his brother closer. “You have me for that.”

Stevie shrugged. “But I like when you’re both there to do the voices.”

“We’ll all get to see them soon, OK?” Sam reassured his brother, glancing at his mother for confirmation. “Really soon, I hope.”

Mary nodded. “I’ll keep in contact outside for you, let you know when you’ll be able to see them,” she promised. “Why don’t you go ahead and get some rest for now? They’re gonna keep waking you up because of the concussion, you should sleep while you can.”

Sam sighed, pulling the covers up tightly around him. “K,” he sleepily answered, turning on his side. Stacey draped an arm around him and Stevie moved to jump off the bed to give Sam room. “No,” Sam stopped Stevie. “You guys can stay if you want, but you might have to leave tonight, Dad might take you home to sleep in your own beds.”

“Ew,” Stevie exclaimed, sticking his tongue out.

“Yeah, no, you’re not losing sleep on account of me,” Sam laughed. “But you can stay here until it’s time to leave, OK?” He pulled them both closer to him and closed his eyes to rest.

And that’s how Sam fell asleep, his brother and sister clinging to him on both sides, until the nurse came in to check on Sam and they were woken up and made to leave, much to Stacey’s complete and utter disappointment.

“I love you, Sammy,” she cried as she was pulled away.

“Love you,” Sam groaned sleepily. “See you tomorrow, OK, Stace?”

“OK,” she cried.

“OK, Stevie? Tomorrow?”

Stevie grinned and put a hand out for a high five that Sam returned. “Love you, Sam.”

“Love you, little bro.”


	25. Feel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part 3 of a 5-part arc (23, 24, 25, 26, and 27). Blaine-centric.

Blaine stirred in his hospital bed, eliciting a shriek from his mother’s chair, firmly placed at his bedside. “Blaine? Baby?” she cried. Blaine blinked against the light and his mother reached for his hand. “Blaine, baby, you’re in the hospital. Your father and I are here, Cooper’s taking the next flight out.”

Blaine’s eyes narrowed at the mention of Cooper. Things had to have been bad if he was in the hospital and Cooper was flying home. “What… what happened?”

“You were in a car accident,” his father explained from a chair across the way. “Coming home from the movies earlier.”

“Oh, God,” Blaine breathed out. He remembered the movie, he remembered leaving, joking with Sam and Tina, but he couldn’t remember getting into the accident. “Are Sam and Tina OK?”

“Sam has a concussion,” his father explained. “Kid lucked out calling shotgun, it was your side of the car that was hit. Tina’s in pretty bad shape. She’s still in surgery to repair some broken ribs.”

Blaine cringed at the thought. “When can I see them?” he asked.

“Sam should be ready sooner than Tina, I think his mother said he was trying to rest as much as possible right now, since they have to wake him up so much,” his father explained. “You should take some time and rest too, before Cooper gets here.”

“Too awake right now, I think,” Blaine sighed, moving to pull himself into a sitting position. He struggled to pull himself up, as his legs didn’t want to move with the rest of him, like they were being held down with anvils. He glanced down at them for an explanation of the extra weight, expecting heavy braces or casts. Nothing seemed large and bulky under the covers, and he threw them back to inspect the situation.

He prodded experimentally at the tops of his thighs, drawing in a breath of horror when he felt nothing. “No,” he gasped. “No, no, no, no, no, this is not happening, this is not happening to me!” His mother threw her head in her hands and wailed, his father coming up next to him and taking his hand. “Dad, I can’t **feel** my legs,” Blaine cried out, shaking and sobbing.

Blaine’s father sighed, pulling his son into a hug. “They told us it’s only temporary,” he explained. “Minor nerve damage. I know it’s scary right now, and it’s obviously going to take a lot of getting used to, but this can be fixed. The nerves are a little damaged, bruised maybe. Nothing was severed, you’ll be able to move again once things are healed up.”

Blaine’s breath hitched in a sob and he punched himself in the leg frustratedly. “I’m scared,” he whispered, hot, frustrated tears stinging his face.

“I know, Blaine,” his father replied. “It’s going to take a lot of work. Once the nerves heal, you’re going to need some physical therapy to get everything working again at full strength. But you can do it. I know you and I know you’re not going to give up until you get it right. Maybe we could get that friend of yours in to talk to you? The one in the wheelchair? Odds are you’ll need to use one for a little while while you’re healing. Might be good to talk to someone who understands.”

“I don’t wanna talk about it right now,” Blaine’s voice shook, falling backwards onto the pillow.

“Just rest,” his father spoke, guiding his mother from the chair at his bedside and into one of the chairs across the room. “You have a lot of work ahead of you once everything’s healed up, you should rest now, and it’ll all be over before you know it. We’ll be right across the room, OK? Get some rest. Cooper should be getting in in a few hours.”

Blaine pulled the covers over himself again, curling up in the bed as tightly as he could with his uncooperative legs, drifting into a fitful, worried sleep.

He was again woken by a gentle shake to the shoulder, opening his eyes to find Cooper standing over him. “Hey, Squirt,” Cooper sadly smiled. “Came as soon as I heard.”

Blaine looked around the room- all the bright, harsh white light was replaced with darkness. “What time is it?” he asked.

“It’s late,” Cooper replied. “You should sleep, I just wanted to say hi. Wanted to… see you awake for myself.”

“You didn’t have to come,” Blaine told him.

“Are you kidding me?” Cooper hissed. “My baby brother could have died today. And I didn’t have to come?”

“Not dead,” Blaine sleepily replied. “Just broken.”

“You’re not broken, B, your nerves are just shot,” Cooper reassured him. “A little hard work and you’ll be fine. Don’t you have those friends in wheelchairs to help you out at school?”

“Just Artie,” Blaine corrected him. Then it dawned on him. “Oh, last time you were here, Quinn was in the chair too, right? Yeah, she’s fine now.”

Cooper smiled. “And you’ll be fine too. Get some sleep, Squirt.”

“Don’t think I can,” Blaine admitted. “I’m scared, I’m thinking too much, I’m a mess, Coop.”

Cooper smiled, pulling out his phone. “Fine,” he smirked, thumbing through his apps before opening one. “Then I’m staying up with you. Wanna play a game?”

“You just got in from a long flight, don’t let me keep you up,” Blaine waved him off.

“Shut up, Squirt,” Cooper retorted. “Take this while you can get it, it’s not every day you’re gonna see me do these things for you.” He tapped the screen a few times. “OK, your turn.” He handed off the phone to Blaine. Blaine expertly tapped out a quick sequence, handing the phone back to Cooper.

“You think that was good?” Cooper scoffed. “I have an awesome one for you.” Cooper focused all his attention on his phone, tapping away at the screen slowly and methodically, then fast-paced and quick-reflexed. When he was finished, he pulled back the phone to admire the full scope of his handiwork. “Beat that, B.”

No hand reached out to take the phone from him. “B?” Cooper questioned, glancing up from the screen to look at his brother. He found Blaine curled up in the bed, passed out from sheer exhaustion. Cooper chuckled to himself. “Night, B,” he whispered, pulling the covers up around Blaine and retreating to the other side of the room. “Sleep well.”


	26. Breathe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part 4 of a 5-part arc (23, 24, 25, 26 and 27). Tina-centric.

Tina woke up in a panic, feeling an odd sensation in her throat, like she was choking on something. She coughed suddenly and loudly, startling her parents at her bedside. “Tina,” her mother reassured her. “Tina, it’s OK. You’re in the hospital, you, Blaine, and Sam were in an accident.”

Tina tried to speak, but the obstruction in her throat rendered her unable. She gestured helplessly toward her mother. “It’s a breathing tube, honey, don’t fight it,” her mother explained. You broke some ribs in the accident…” At this, Tina groaned around the tube; that explained the feeling like her chest was on fire. “One of the ribs punctured a lung,” her mother continued. “They found it when you came around in the ambulance and couldn’t **breathe**. Your oxygen stats had dropped a bit by the time you got here, so while you were in surgery to fix the hole, they put you on the ventilator to bring them back up. When you came out of surgery they told us your stats had improved enough that they wanted to try to take you off the ventilator, but they wanted to wait until you woke up. I’m going to go get a nurse, OK?”

Tina’s mother started to walk away, but Tina reached out and grabbed her hand, a silent beg of _Don’t leave._ She nodded, turning to Tina’s father. He stood and left the room, leaving Tina and her mother inside.

“I spoke to Blaine and Sam’s moms outside earlier,” Tina’s mother spoke. “They’re both doing alright, all things considered.” Tina visibly relaxed, her tense state now only attributed to the tube in her throat. “Sam’s concussed,” her mother continued. “Not being directly hit did that boy a lot of wonders. And Blaine’s got some nerve damage. Last I heard, he hadn’t woken up yet, but the damage was minimal and they’re waiting to assess it when he wakes up.”

Tina nodded, groaning to herself when the tube shifted awkwardly. She reached up to wipe away the tears forming in her eyes.

Some minutes later, Tina’s father returned with a nurse, who was carrying another breathing apparatus. “Hey, Tina, I’m Jen,” the nurse cheerily smiled. “Glad to see you awake. We’re going to try to remove your ventilator, OK? Your oxygen stats look great, but we’re going to make sure we keep them up by keeping you on supplemental oxygen for a little while longer.” She gestured to the breathing apparatus she’d brought in with her. “Now, I’m going to remove the part of the machine that’s breathing for you, OK?” Jen reached over, shutting off the ventilator before disconnecting it from the tube itself. “I want you to take as deep a breath as you can for me, OK? It’s OK if you cough, that’s a good sign too.”

Tina pulled herself up onto her elbows, taking in a deep breath. She coughed at the end when she was unable to drag it out any longer, Jen smiling at her. “Great job, Tina, now I’m going to ask you to cough again so I can pull out the tube, OK?” Tina nodded, and Jen got into position, gently maneuvering the tube from Tina’s throat as she coughed.

“Great,” Jen smiled. “Your throat’s going to feel a little sore and scratchy for a bit, but that should stop in a day or two. Can you try to speak for us?”

“Y-yeah,” Tina’s voice came out scratchy and exhausted.

“You sound great, we’ll just keep you hydrated and all the scratchiness should go away soon,” Jen told her. “Now, this is the new breathing apparatus you’re going to be wearing for a while,” Jen explained, bringing it closer. “You’re going to be wearing it in your nose most of the time,” she explained, holding up the nasal attachment on the apparatus.

“Like The Fault In Our Stars?” Tina asked.

“My daughter loves that book,” Jen smiled. “But yes, like hers.” She plugged in the machine and turned it on, before placing the small plastic piece over Tina’s face. “There’s also an oxygen mask attachment. If you’re ever feeling short of breath, you can swap out your nasal apparatus for the full coverage piece.”

“OK,” Tina agreed, nodding along as she explained.

“I’m the nurse for the rest of the evening, just page me if you need anything, OK?” she asked.

“Alright, thanks,” Tina agreed. Jen left the room and Tina turned to her mother. “I want to see them,” she cried, sitting up in the bed. “Sam and Blaine. I want to see them.” She wiped the tears from her face. “God, they’re gonna kill me for crying.”

“You need to rest, Tina,” her mother scolded her, pushing her lightly back onto the bed. “Let’s see how you’re doing breathing-wise in the morning, and then I’ll talk to people about getting you guys together.”

Tina gestured to the new breathing apparatus on the floor next to the bed. “It’s tiny!” she fought. “It’s on wheels! I swear, if I have to get up, wheel this thing out of here and find them myself, I’m gonna do it.”

“Tina,” her mother shook her head. “The morning isn’t that far away. The quicker you fall asleep, the quicker it’ll get here.” Tina sniffled in response. “And please stop crying,” her mother added. “You’re already not breathing at 100%, we don’t want them to put you back on the ventilator.”

“I just want to see Sam and Blaine!” Tina wailed.

“They’re going to be OK,” her mother reassured her. “They’ll be OK, and come tomorrow morning, they’ll be waiting to see you, and you’ll all be much better for it.”

“I want them now!” Tina cried. “I don’t know if I’m gonna believe they’re OK until I see them…”

“Sam’s sleeping right now,” her mother reminded her. “And Blaine’s not even awake yet.” At this, Tina let out a sob. “I promise I’ll let you know the second something changes,” she told her. “But we should at least wait until Blaine wakes up to see him. And let Sam sleep, poor thing is going to be woken up a lot tonight.”

Tina nodded, turning over in bed. “I just want to know they’re OK,” she sobbed, snuggling deep into the covers. She cried into the pillow until exhaustion took over and she fell asleep, praying for the next day to come.


	27. Share

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Final part of a 5-part arc (23, 24, 25, 26, and 27).

Morning came too quickly for Sam, blinking against the light and groaning. He’d been woken up multiple times throughout the night to monitor his concussion, and he was exhausted. “Morning, Sam,” his mother smiled, walking to his side. “Still tired?”

Sam nodded. “Head hurts. Just wanna sleep,” he agreed.

Mary Evans shook her head. “The nurse should be in any minute to move you to your new room,” she told him. “Last time they woke you up, they decided you were responding well enough to be moved to a regular room. I’m not sure you remember, you were really out of it from being woken up so much.”

“Still am,” Sam groaned.

“You can sleep once you get to your new room,” Mary smiled. “Should be quieter, this room is just off the emergency room, the new one’s on a regular floor.”

“Good morning, Sam!” a voice appeared in the doorway. “Ready for the big move?”

Sam groaned and rolled over in bed. “Sorry, I don’t mean to be the bad guy, I’m sure the night nurses are all on your list right now for waking you up so much,” she laughed. “I’m Haley, I’m the morning nurse down here, but seeing as you’re going to be moved upstairs, I guess I’m not making that list,” she joked.

Sam smiled halfheartedly and Haley brightly smiled back. “What do you say we get you upstairs and you can get right back to resting, OK?”

Sam nodded. “Yeah, anything to sleep again.” He groaned and laid back against the pillow.

“OK, I’ll be right back,” Haley told him. “I’ll get the wheelchair and we’ll transport you right upstairs.”

Haley left the room and returned minutes later pushing an empty wheelchair. “Here you go, Sam, your chariot awaits.”

Haley and Mary assisted Sam into the chair, pushing him out of the room and into a nearby elevator.

“You aren’t in a private room,” Haley explained to Sam. “You don’t have a roommate as of right now, but there’s a possibility of getting one in the future.”

Sam turned to his mother, hope in his eyes. “I want Blaine.”

“Blaine?” Haley asked.

“Blaine, my best friend,” Sam explained. “He’s here, we… we were in the accident together. And if I’m gonna have a roommate, I want him.”

Haley nodded. “Is he still downstairs?” she asked.

Sam nodded and Haley continued. “I would talk to whoever his nurse is at the moment,” she suggested. “They’ll be able to assess his condition and whether he’s ready to be moved here.”

“I’ll talk to his mother later, see how things are going,” Mary spoke. “I promise, OK? It could be good for both of you.”

They pulled up to Sam’s new room, settling Sam into the bed. “It’s roomy in here,” Mary remarked, looking around at the open space within the room.

“It’s built to be a triple occupancy room,” Haley explained. “But we never really use it that way for overcrowding reasons. A third bed can fit with full hookups between the two that are already in here.”

Sam’s eyes lit up. “You need to get Blaine and Tina both in here,” he begged.

“We’ll talk about it,” Mary smiled.

“Another friend?” Haley smiled.

Sam nodded. “My best friends. Both of them.”

“If you’re all comfortable and settled in, I’ll be heading back downstairs,” she said, turning to leave the room. “Get some rest, Sam.” Sam turned over in the bed and did just that, drifting into an exhausted sleep, knowing he would only be woken again soon.

\---

“Are you sure he’s ready for this?” a doctor spoke in hushed whispers on the other side of a curtain, standing with the nurse on duty and Blaine’s parents and Cooper.

“He checks out physically, he should be moved to make room for more dire cases,” the nurse explained.

“Yes, Amber, he’s going to be moved,” the doctor sighed. “But I have half a mind to move him to the psychiatric ward, he’s clearly not taking the diagnosis well.”

“Would _you_?” Cooper scoffed. “He’s a people person. Those guys are his best friends, they’ll make him feel way better. Putting him in the psych ward’s just gonna make him feel like even more of a freak. He already thinks he’s broken physically, don’t make him think he’s broken mentally, too.”

“Cooper’s right,” Blaine’s mom nodded in agreement. “Those three are inseparable. Can’t we just try and let them **share** a room? We’ll let you send him for psychiatric help if this doesn’t work. But I’m sure all he needs is friends.”

The doctor shook his head. “This is against my better judgment, but we can try. You’ll see soon enough that Blaine is in dire need of psychiatric help.”

Cooper rolled his eyes and burst through the curtain, bounding up to Blaine. “It’s moving day, Squirt!” he said excitedly. “Finally gonna get a new room!”

“Yayyyyyy.” The faked enthusiasm was evident in Blaine’s voice.

“Oh, come on, Squirt, ease up,” Cooper smiled. “You’re being moved out of an observation room into a regular one. It’s a step in the right direction.”

“Nothing’s better until I’m taking steps in any direction,” Blaine huffed.

Cooper sighed. “Just try for us, B?”

Blaine sighed in return. “I’m not making any promises.”

The nurse walked in seconds later pushing a wheelchair, followed by Blaine’s mother and father. “Hi, Blaine, ready to move upstairs?” she smiled.

“Like I have a choice, I can’t get away,” Blaine snapped.

“It’s a good thing!” Amber smiled. “You’re doing well enough to leave observation!”

“Told you so,” Cooper stuck his tongue out.

Amber transferred Blaine carefully from the bed into the chair and started down the hallway to the elevator, the entire family in tow.

Approaching the room, Amber smiled down at Blaine. “I hear your roommate’s been dying to have you.”She pushed the wheelchair into the room, where Blaine was greeted with the sleeping form of Sam, and the entirety of Sam’s family- Sam’s father, brother, and sister having arrived since Sam had fallen back asleep- glancing up at him. Dwight released Stevie and Stacey from his lap, both running over to hug Blaine.

“Blaine!” Mary exclaimed. “Oh, thank goodness, Sam’s been so worried about you, he’s going to be so happy to have you for a roommate.”

“Yeah,” Blaine sighed. “I’m glad he’s OK, from what I’ve been told, he’s lucky he was sitting on the passenger side. Tina and I are all kinds of messed up.”

Amber lifted Blaine from the chair as he spoke and placed him in the empty bed. “Hey, good luck, OK?” she told him. “Hang in there.” She left the room soon after settling him in.

Some seconds later, Sam stirred at the commotion in his room. “What- what happened now?” he asked sleepily.

“Blaine’s here!” Mary told him. “Your request went through, he’s rooming with you!”

Sam cheered in triumph as he spotted Blaine across the room. “Yessss!” he fistpumped the air. “Dude, how are you? I haven’t heard anything since like, yesterday, I’m going crazy here…”

Blaine shrugged. “Alive?” he replied.

Sam nodded. “They said you were gonna have some sort of nerve damage?” he pried further. “What kind of cool X-Men power are you gonna end up with? Fingers that freeze up all the time, or a heat thing, or a feels no pain thing?”

Blaine sighed. “I’m freakin’ Professor X, dude.”

“Soooo…” Sam dragged out, knowing full well what he meant but not wanting to believe it. “The telepathy, right? You mean the telepathy?”

Blaine punched his thighs in frustration, his voice breaking into a sob. “I can’t feel my legs, Sam!” he shouted back, curling in on himself and crying.

Sam gasped aloud, holding back a sob of his own. “Dude,” he breathed. “Did you need to talk to Artie? We can get Artie to come and…”

Blaine cut him off. “I don’t feel like talking to anyone right now.”

“Oh, come on, drama queen,” Cooper huffed. “It’s only temporary,” he explained from his seat, attempting to reassure Sam. “If he puts the work in, the nerves will repair themselves and he’ll be fine.” He turned, directing the next part at Blaine. “Which is why he shouldn’t be so damn stubborn.”

Sam sighed, wiping away the tears that had escaped. He rolled over, pulling himself to the edge of the bed and sitting up over the side. He sat for a minute to orient himself, and then stood, walking carefully over to Blaine’s bed and sitting on the edge. “Hey,” Sam whispered, pulling Blaine in for a hug. “It’s OK, we’re gonna work through this together, OK? Whenever you’re ready, you can talk to Artie, and I promise I’m gonna work with you, and your family’s gonna work with you, and the rest of the glee club is gonna work with you, to make this whole thing blow over as fast as possible. No giving up until you’re on your feet. We all helped Quinn through it, we’re gonna help you too.”

“Thanks,” Blaine choked out.

“Anytime, dude,” Sam smiled. “We’re gonna get out of here, and we’re gonna go see that movie again. Because honestly, I don’t even remember seeing the movie, my brain’s a mess.”

“You don’t?” Cooper cut in. “Yeah, you definitely have to see it again, Michael Bay’s a genius. A god, even. A god that doesn’t know talent when he sees it, but a god nonetheless.”

“Shut up, Coop,” Blaine mumbled into his pillow.

Sam glanced at Blaine, laughing at his face smushed into the pillow. “You want to sleep?” Sam asked, carefully standing from Blaine’s bed. “I should probably get some sleep in myself.” He walked back over to his own bed, curling up under the thin covers instantly.

\---

Tina woke from a sound sleep. She blinked against the sunlight. “Morning already?” she asked.

“Good morning, Tina,” her mother smiled. “How are you feeling?”

“Sore,” Tina groaned. “But amazing as far as the whole breathing thing goes.”

“That’s good, Tina,” her mother smiled.

“Yeah, great,” Tina dismissed her. “How’s Blaine? Have you heard? Is he awake yet?”

Tina’s mother smiled and nodded. “I snuck out of here for a bit after you fell asleep last night and talked to his father. Cooper had just gotten in, Blaine had woken up some time just before that.”

Tina sighed in relief. “Thank God,” she breathed. “When can I see him? And Sam?”

“I can do you one better,” Tina’s mother smiled. “Sam got moved to a new room earlier this morning. It’s triple occupancy, and he’s requested two special roommates.”

“Really?” Tina asked excitedly.

“As long as you check out physically and can be moved from the observation area, then yes. The room is yours.”

“I feel awesome,” Tina insisted. “Please, please let me be with them?”

Tina’s mother smiled. “I’ll go get a nurse to check you out, OK?”

Tina smiled back. “OK.”

Tina’s mother left the room and returned with a nurse. “Hi, Tina, I’m Megan. How are you feeling this morning?”

“Great,” Tina replied. “Haven’t felt short of breath at all.”

Megan rounded on Tina’s stats monitor, reading the screen. “Everything looks great, Tina,” she smiled. “Your oxygen stats are very nearly back where we want them, I’d say you only need one more day with the supplemental oxygen.”

“Can I move out yet?” Tina asked eagerly.

“We’ve got a room ready for you upstairs, it was just waiting for you to see me this morning…”

Tina cut her off. “I want to room with my friends.”

Tina’s mother smiled at her. “What did I tell you, Tina? The room is yours. I heard about the room from Sam’s mother, and I pulled some strings to get you in.”

Megan turned to leave the room. “I’m going to go get the wheelchair and we’ll move you right upstairs, OK?”

Tina bounced excitedly as she pulled herself up on the edge of the bed, and waited there until Megan brought the wheelchair in. She wheeled her upstairs and down the hallway toward her new room.

“Here we are!” Megan exclaimed brightly, stopping in front of the door. “Let me just make sure everything is ready for you.” She disappeared inside the room, returning a few seconds later. “Everything’s ready,” she smiled. “And your friends are excited to see you.” She wheeled Tina into the room.

Tina smiled at her two best friends as she was wheeled past them and she climbed into the bed closest to the window, sitting on the edge and facing them. “I’ll let you get caught up with your friends, your new nurse for this floor will be in at some point if any of you need anything,” Megan smiled, turning and leaving the room.

Cooper looked around at all the families gathered in the room. “I think I’m gonna step out and give these three some time together,” he smiled, leaving the room, the various other family members nodding in agreement and leaving behind him.

Sam watched as they left, then turned to Tina. “What’s with the breathing machine, Hazel Grace?” he quipped. Tina laughed at the reference he’d made, noting it was similar to the one she’d made the night before.

“Breathing machine?” Blaine raised his bed, craning his neck to look over at Tina. “They told us you broke your ribs, what…”

Tina shook her head in a disbelieving sort of amusement. “Yeah, I did,” she sighed. “Then one of them thought it might be a fun idea to poke a hole in one of my lungs. Couldn’t breathe, they put me on a ventilator while I was in surgery to fix it to bring my oxygen stats back up, then on this when I came around after. Should only be about a day more with this,” she explained.

She hadn’t noticed while she was telling them, but Sam had moved to the edge of his bed and stood, and she now found him climbing up next to her, pulling her into a careful hug. “I’m so glad you’re OK,” he choked out, burying his head in her shoulder. “I don’t know what I’d do without the both of you… you both scared me so bad…”

Tina wrapped her arms around Sam in return. “Hey, don’t cry, everything’s gonna be fine, we’re OK.” She glanced over Sam’s shoulder at Blaine. “What, too cool to join the group hug?” she joked.

Blaine shook his head. “Nerve damage kind of took the feeling from my legs,” he sighed, frustratedly poking at his thighs again.

Tina’s eyes instantly welled up with tears and she shook her head, both ashamed and slightly amused with herself. “I’m such a hypocrite,” she laughed halfheartedly as Sam held her. “Just got finished telling Sam not to cry and you go and make me bawl like a baby.”

“Why don’t you guys come on over here?” Blaine suggested. Sam stood slowly, and put a hand out to Tina, who followed, dragging her portable oxygen behind her.

The pair climbed onto Blaine’s bed, Tina’s hand finding Blaine’s and running her thumb across the back of his hand sympathetically. “Have you…” she choked out a small sob. “Have you talked to Artie yet? Maybe he… maybe he can help you learn how to deal with everything and make this easier and…”

“I don’t want to talk to Artie,” Blaine cut her off. “This… this isn’t like Artie, the nerves are just bruised, they’ll heal and I’ll be OK. I mean, I… I have to believe that, right? That’s what they’re telling me, and I have to believe that.”

Sam sighed, crashing onto the pillow, falling into the seated position of the mattress beside Blaine. “Dude,” he started. “You’re at least gonna have to use a chair for a little bit until you’re healed, talking to Artie is only gonna help you use it better. He can help you navigate the hallways, and let you store your stuff in his bottom row locker… the simple things.”

“Talking to Artie makes this real,” Blaine choked out.

Sam pulled Blaine into a half-hug. “Hate to break it to you, but being here right now makes it real. Talking to Artie won’t make it any more or less real. You can’t move your legs, Tina couldn’t breathe, and I still can’t even remember much of yesterday. It happened. To all of us. And for some reason, we’re all still alive.” Sam pulled Tina into his other side, and Tina wrapped around Blaine, effectively closing the hug. “Embrace it.”

“We all rallied around Quinn when she was in the chair,” Tina added. “You know we’re gonna do the same for you.”

Sam nodded along. “Like I told you before, man. We are in this thing together. Whether you like it or not. Whether you want our help or our sympathy, you’re gonna get it. Because we love you, OK?”

Blaine sighed, tightening his grip on both of them. “I’m just… scared,” he admitted. “Scared that they’re wrong and this isn’t going to fix itself and I’ll need to talk to Artie about more than the simple things.”

“You can worry about that when you get there,” Sam reassured him. “Right now, all you know is what they’re telling you, and you need to believe it for it to happen. And we’re gonna be here to help you get through it easier.”

Blaine sighed, lowering the bed slightly so he could relax. “Thanks,” he choked out.

“Anytime,” Tina smiled, immediately using the lowered bed to her advantage, curling up next to Blaine on one side, Sam contemplating it before doing the same on the other.

\---

“Hey, look at this,” Cooper whispered from the doorway of the room, ushering the others in to look. He smiled as he watched his brother sleep, his two best friends cuddled tightly around him, also sleeping, a smile on his face for the first time since he’d arrived.

“Is that allowed?” Sam’s father chimed in, holding Stevie and Stacey back from joining the cuddle pile with a promise they could join when they were all awake again.

“Let them,” Cooper smiled. “This is the happiest I’ve seen Blaine look yet.” He turned to his mother. “Can we get that smug doctor in here?” he smirked. “I wanna show him B doesn’t need the psych ward. Just… friends. He needed friends.”


	28. Calculator

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I SWEAR I'M STILL HERE. I haven't written in a while, it comes in spells, but I'm here and I have this one, and probably another tonight or tomorrow.

Sam Evans dreaded the test fold. He’d been handed back enough tests upside down and awkwardly curled in the teacher’s hand to know that it meant “this grade is shameful, I’m hiding it for you.” But so did the rest of the class, so every time any test or paper did the folded march of shame, the whole class knew you’d failed.

Sam groaned inwardly when he saw the folded math test coming toward him. He could feel the entire class’ eyes on him, the silent judgment not well hidden at all. One set of eyes, however, were sympathetic. Sam smiled gratefully at Blaine as he took the test from the teacher’s hands, curling the edge up to see the grade on it, dropping his head in his hands and sighing.

After class, Blaine stopped Sam just outside the classroom. “That bad?” he asked.

“Awful,” Sam groaned. “Like, I’ve outdone myself kind of awful. This is a whole new low for me.” He passed the paper to Blaine, turning down the corner so only Blaine would see.

Blaine sighed and shook his head. “Did you want me to help you for the next one?” he asked. “I did alright, so I guess I understand it.”

“If you can figure out what the heck I’m doing wrong,” Sam replied. “I plug everything into the stupid **calculator** exactly as it is on the paper, and put down what it gives me back. I am literally copying the answer down exactly from the screen. How is it wrong?”

“Maybe it’s something in showing your work?” Blaine suggested. “Like, the calculator gave you the right answer, but you screwed up somewhere in justifying it?”

“Why do I have to suck so bad at math?” Sam groaned. “I already suck at everything else because it involves reading, why do I have to suck at numbers too?” He tossed his calculator at a locker, the clanging noise startling the few students still milling around in the hallway.

"Whoa!" Tina's voice joined theirs, peeking her head out from the next classroom over. She looked from Sam's still-outstretched hand, to the slightly dented locker, to the calculator laying on the floor in front of it. "You OK?" she asked him.

"I'm so stupid at this stuff," Sam groaned, leaning against the locker. "And everyone knows, because that stupid folded upside down thing teachers do doesn't hide a damn thing except the number. Everyone sees those folded up tests coming my way and they stare at me like I've gone and done something shameful."

Tina stepped out from the classroom door, joining Blaine and Sam. "You're not stupid," she reassured him, putting a hand on his shoulder to calm him down. "I'm sure we can help you out, just let either of us know what you're struggling with and we'll help you fix it."

"Everything," Sam replied. "I'm struggling with everything, OK? And I'm sure there's nothing you can do that the teachers haven't already tried."

Tina sighed. "Give it a shot, OK?" she asked. "Just let us try to help you out for next time, and we'll figure out what works. I don't want you to think you're stupid or incapable of this."

"People are idiots," Blaine added. "Staring at you like that just for getting a bad grade back." He sighed. "Tell you what, if that happens again, just ignore them and find me, OK? I'm just a few rows away, and I can keep your focus away from all the rude staring, OK?"

Sam nodded. "Thanks," he replied, leaning down to pick up his calculator just as the bell rang to start the next class.

"You OK?" Blaine asked. "We could skip the first few minutes of your next class to cool you down a bit."

"Can't," Sam sighed. "Got another test to fail. Should get going before I'm docked points for being late, I need all the points I can get."

"You'll be fine," Blaine laughed, clapping Sam on the shoulder as he walked away.

Tina stopped Sam and pulled him into a side-hug. "Let us know how it goes, OK?" she asked him. "And in the meantime, we'll figure something out. By the end of the year, I'm promising you at least one A in that class, OK?"

"Does attendance count? I'm pretty sure I have an A in that..." Sam mused aloud.

"Shh," Tina scolded him. "It's a promise."


	29. Threat

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another! CONTENT WARNING: USE OF A PARTICULARLY NASTY WORD FOR GAY PEOPLE. Also, I may have borrowed Sue's nickname for Sam from a Jimmy Fallon monologue joke about some random politician.

Blaine's eyes narrowed upon reaching his locker one Monday morning. His usually pristine locker was covered in scratches and dents, and the lock had been beaten open. The door swung open the second Blaine touched it, and the inside was in just as sorry a state as the outside. His books were haphazardly thrown about, papers were torn, and garbage was left thrown inside. The only semblance of neatness left to Blaine's locker was the neatly folded paper laying on top of the mess.

Blaine pulled the paper from his locker and opened it, revealing a messy scrawl inside. The perpetrator clearly had a thing for mess.

 _Kill yourself, fag,_ it read. _Or we'll do it for you. Your boyfriend isn't here to save you anymore._

Blaine's breath caught in his throat and he let the paper fall to the floor, pressing himself up against the row of lockers wishing he could disappear into them. The paper was right, Kurt wasn't around to protect him anymore. They had broken up after Blaine cheated, and although they were on slightly better terms now, Kurt was still away in New York, while Blaine was stuck in Lima for another year.

Blaine was alone here now. Exposed. Vulnerable.

"Blaine?" a voice broke him out of his stupor.

"Oh!" Blaine startled. "Hey, Sam."

"You looking for something?" Sam asked.

"No," Blaine replied.

"Because your locker looks like a tornado flew through here."

Blaine pulled the locker door shut, showing Sam the front. "Would a tornado do that?" he asked.

Sam's mouth gaped open at the beaten look of the locker. "Did… did someone do this to your locker?" Sam asked. "Like, on purpose?"

"I don't know," Blaine lied, stepping backward and pulling the paper under his foot inconspicuously.

"What's that?"

 _Not inconspicuous enough, Blaine,_ he thought to himself. "I dunno, garbage?" he replied aloud.

"Blaine…" Sam warned.

"Fine, it was in there," Blaine admitted. "But it's still garbage." He lifted his foot and kicked the paper toward Sam.

Sam leaned over and picked up the now-crumpled paper, unfolding it and reading it. His eyes grew wider with every word. "Blaine..." he gasped. "This is a **threat**. We need to take this to Sue."

"No," Blaine forced out. "If we take it to Sue, they'll come after me worse."

"With Sue on their back?" Sam asked incredulously. "No way. This is serious, Blaine, we have to show this to someone."

"No, I can't, I..."

"No," Sam cut off Blaine's answer. "I'm not letting you say no to this. We are showing this to Sue. They're wrong, OK? I might not be Kurt or anything, but you have me here to protect you now. And I say someone needs to hear about this."

"I don't need to be protected," Blaine huffed.

"Maybe protected was a bad choice of words," Sam admitted. "I can defend you. Stand up for you... no, with you. You can stand up for yourself, and I can stand up for you right there with you."

"They'll hurt you too," Blaine protested.

"I know," Sam replied. "And I can take it. You know, when you and Kurt first met, I stood up for him to Karofsky? I got punched in the face for it. But it was totally worth it."

Blaine shook his head. "No way. I'm not letting you get hurt for me."

"And I'm not letting you get hurt, period," Sam retorted. "You know you're not getting out of this, especially when Tina finds out. She's gonna be furious."

"Maybe we could get it over with before she finds out?" Blaine suggested. "The last thing I need is her crying over this."

Sam wrapped Blaine in a quick hug. He wasn't about to ask Blaine to wait for Tina, as much as he wanted to include her, in case he changed his mind again. "Let's do this. I'll be right there. The whole time, OK?"

"OK," Blaine sighed, following Sam down the hallway to Sue's office.

"Hey, you two," a voice stopped them right outside the office.

"Oh, hey, Tina," Sam greeted her.

"What are you guys up to?"

"Seeing Sue about something," Sam attempted to explain it away.

"Yeah," Blaine added, beckoning Tina closer. "You should probably come in with us."

Sam eyed Blaine strangely. "I thought you said you didn't want her finding out," he said.

"Well, she's here now," Blaine shrugged. "And she was gonna find out eventually anyway, and I could honestly use the support." He turned to Tina. "You just have to promise me you aren't going to freak out on anyone, OK?"

"What's going on?" Tina asked. "Did something happen? Are you OK?"

"Yeah," Blaine reassured her. "Well, yes and no. Physically, yes."

"Blaine..." Tina warned him.

"I found this in my locker this morning," he explained, handing her the note. "My whole locker was trashed, and this was in there."

Tina read over the note several times before thrusting it back into Blaine's hands. "What the hell?" she hissed. "Not if I kill them first."

"Tina," Blaine sighed. "You promised you weren't going to freak out. Please don't do anything stupid because you're trying to defend me?"

"But..."

"But nothing, Tee," Blaine cut her off. "I don't want to see you hurt on account of me. Sam, either. I appreciate you both wanting to defend me, but if anything happened to either of you, I'd feel awful. Promise me you won't go after anyone?"

"OK," Tina agreed.

"I'll try," Sam added. "But I can't promise how I'll feel in the moment."

"Sam..." Blaine warned him.

"What?" Sam fought back. "If I have to defend you, I'm gonna do it." Blaine stared pointedly at him and Sam sighed. "What?" he asked again. "I said I'll try my hardest. But I'm not making any sort of promises."

Blaine sighed and led the way into Sue's office. "Hi, Becky, we're here to see Principal Sylvester?"

"She's busy!" Becky hollered at them, Sam backing away slightly at the volume.

"It's alright, Becky, send them in," Sue replied, an amused smile crossing her face. She glanced up as Blaine, Sam, and Tina entered. "Helmet Head, Tragic Mike, Lucy Liu, what brings you to my office?"

"I found this in my locker this morning," Blaine explained, taking the note back from Tina and handing it to Sue. "And my whole locker was trashed, too."

Sue put her glasses on, carefully reading over the note. "Do you have any idea who might have done this?"

"No," Blaine shook his head. "I don't recognize the handwriting, either."

Sam leaned over Sue's desk, looking at the note again. "Yeah, sorry, man, don't recognize it."

Blaine sighed, turning to Tina. "Sorry," she shook her head, putting a comforting hand on Blaine's shoulder.

"We'll look into it," Sue assured him. "I'll collect handwriting samples from all the students, and we'll find out who wrote this."

"Thanks, Coach," Blaine nodded.

"Are you going to be OK today or did you want to sit in here?" Sue offered, eyeing Blaine with concern. "It seems you're caught up enough in all your classes that missing a day wouldn't be any hindrance to your grades."

"I could bring you the work," Sam added.

Blaine shook his head. "No, I'll go," he said. "No use running from someone when I don't even know who I'm running from."

"Blaine, they threatened you," Tina pushed on. "You're not safe."

"Tee, I have to do this," Blaine sighed. "If I constantly think I'm not safe, I'll never be able to focus on class or anything."

"But Blaine..." Tina begged, tears springing to her eyes.

"Aww, Tee," Blaine frowned. "Come here." He pulled her in close, embracing her tightly. "I promise I'm gonna be OK. You can check in on me as much as you need to, OK?"

"OK," Tina cried.

"But don't panic if I don't answer right away," Blaine added. "I'm probably not gonna have my phone out in class."

"OK," Tina nodded, wiping her eyes on his shirt. "Just be safe, OK? Text one of us if you don't feel safe and we'll come find you."

"Promise," Blaine smiled. "But I'm gonna be fine."

Sam nodded, putting a hand on Blaine's shoulder. "We'll be right here if you're not," he assured him. He wrapped his arms around Blaine tightly. "We've got you."

Sue cleared her throat, pulling the group from their moment. "Take your bizarre yet oddly touching three-way lovefest the hell out of my office," she scolded them, waving around three small red pieces of paper. "I wrote you all passes to your first class, now scram."

Blaine took the passes from Sue, leading them out the door. "Thanks, Coach," he nodded in her direction, closing the door behind him.

Sue shook her head as the door closed, lifting the note to inspect it further. "God, I love that kid," she mused aloud. "Whoever did this is going to have to face the wrath of Sue Sylvester for more than one reason."


	30. Tear

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IT'S BEEN SO LONG, MY APOLOGIES. 
> 
> Also, most of these oneshots take place in a universe where Sam's whole family is still around, even in things that are set in later seasons. Mostly because I love writing his brother and sister. This one takes place in canon - where Sam was brought back after moving and is living with Burt and Carole.

Tina closed her locker at the end of the day, swinging her bag over her shoulder and crossing the hallway to where Blaine's locker was. "You ready to go?" she asked him.

"Yeah," Blaine sighed, taking her hand. "We should wait for Sam though, I haven't seen him since we left the auditorium."

"Give him time," Tina sadly nodded. "Today was rough. This whole week's been rough, but today... I don't know how he kept it together." She walked a little ways down the hall and into a tiny alcove in the wall, where one of the doors leading to the balcony of the auditorium was. She leaned against the wall, pulling aside the thick darkening curtain and sadly smiling down at the stage, where they'd all been gathered just moments ago, Sam and Artie singing "Fire and Rain" in memory of Finn.

It was there she saw the lone silhouette, still sitting on the stage, shrouded in darkness. "Blaine!" she called him over in a hushed whisper. "Come here and look at this."

Blaine walked into the alcove behind Tina, pulling back the curtain further. "Sam," he realized aloud, Tina sadly nodding. "Should we go get him?"

Tina sighed. "Yeah, we should go," she agreed. "At least give him someone to sit with if he's not ready to leave."

Blaine took Tina's hand again, walking down the stairs toward the auditorium's side entrance. Tina opened the door once they got there, walking into the darkened wings of the stage ahead of Blaine and approaching Sam quietly. He sat in the same seat he had for the performance, having not moved since. His head was bowed, both hands wrapped around the neck of his guitar, his head leaning against it, tears streaming down his face. Tina walked up to him, sliding quietly into the seat beside him and laying a hand on his back.

Sam glanced up slightly, barely lifting his head. "Hey," he greeted her in a whisper.

"Hey," she replied, watching him with concern and rubbing small calming circles into his back. "You want to head home?"

Sam shook his head. "Not yet," he whispered, his voice thick.

"OK," Tina sadly smiled. "We'll just wait with you, is that OK?" she gestured toward Blaine, who came closer and sat on Sam's other side.

"We'll leave if you want us to," Blaine added.

"N-no," Sam choked out. "Stay."

Tina pulled her chair closer, leaning her head on Sam's shoulder as she continued rubbing his back, feeling his whole body heave with sobs. "You don't have to talk, OK? We're not here to talk. We just want you to have someone here."

"OK," Sam choked out, shaking his head.

They sat in silence, the only sound breaking through being the sobs coming from Sam. Tina stayed close to him, feeling him shaking under her touch, and she pulled him in tighter to her, wrapping him in a proper hug. She held him until she could feel his breathing evening out, the hysterical sobbing finally giving way to a softer, quieter cry.

A deep, shuddering breath. "...I miss him," Sam sighed.

Blaine frowned, pulling one of Sam's hands off of his guitar and taking it into his own, pulling himself closer to Sam and wrapping himself around him. Sam bent down to place the guitar on the floor, and buried his head into Blaine's shoulder, Blaine's other hand reaching up to pull Sam's hair back, and resting on the back of his head, holding him there.

The long quiet continued for a while, Sam's soft cries muffled into Blaine's shoulder, when a strangled sob broke through their attempt at calm. Tina noticed immediately that it didn't match the shaking breaths coming from Sam against her. She frowned, releasing Sam with one arm and reaching it over to Blaine, running her hand up and down Blaine's arm comfortingly as he broke down. She sniffled slightly and buried her face into Sam's shirt. "No," Blaine cried. "Come here. You need hugs too."

Tina moved her chair until she was between Blaine and Sam, facing them both in a tiny makeshift circle. Sam wrapped an arm around her. "I love you guys," Tina cried, resting her head on Sam's shoulder. "This whole thing just makes me feel like... like I need to tell you how much I love you. All the time. Before it's too late. Before I lose you, too."

"Hey, don't think like that," Blaine frowned, dropping his head onto Tina's shoulder and wrapping an arm around her. "I still can barely process this, I don't need any of us to be thinking about losing each other." He paused, drawing in a shaky breath. "But I love you guys too. So much."

Sam's breath caught in his throat in another sob. "Please... please don't talk like that?" he choked out. "I can't lose anyone else, I can't..."

Tina frowned, running the hand around Sam up and down his back soothingly. "We're right here," she reassured him. "And we'll be here for as long as you need us. Whenever you're ready to get up and go home, we are too. And if you want us to stick around at home, too. We'll be there no questions asked, OK?"

"OK," Sam choked out.

Blaine shook his head. "I don't want to leave yet either," he sobbed. "I can't... I can't drive home like this."

Tina pulled Blaine closer. "You don't have to go anywhere," she reassured him. "We're all going to stay right here until we're all comfortable with leaving. We'll leave together, OK? Even if it takes you until tomorrow morning."

"Figgins might care if we stay here that long," Sam laughed halfheartedly.

"No, I think he'll understand," Tina shook her head. "Sue on the other hand? Sue would care."

They stopped when they heard the wheels of the janitor's cart squeaking through the hallway outside the auditorium. The noise stopped outside the door and they broke the hug to glance out the window. They could faintly see a figure peeking into the window, then walking off, the squeaking continuing until it disappeared. "Told you Figgins wouldn't care," Tina smiled. "I think most people understand. We need each other right now."

"I'm really glad I got to know you guys," Sam smiled, pulling them both back into a tight hug. "I don't know how long I would have sat here if you hadn't come looking for me."

"We weren't about to leave without you," Blaine reassured him.

"Even if I hadn't spotted you in here, we would have waited around at our lockers for you," Tina added. "This week's been rough on all of us, but today was really hard for you especially. You guys were so strong through that whole song, you know. You and Artie both. I would have broken down in the first verse. But strong or not, we weren't about to let you go home alone today. Not after that."

"Thank you," Sam smiled. "I love you guys."

Tina nodded. "I love you both so much," she smiled, pulling out of the hug and taking both of their hands in hers. "Whenever we leave, you're both welcome over by me, OK? I've been so upset this week, my mother's been cooking like crazy to try to make me feel better, and there's no way I can eat it all alone."

Blaine laughed. "Only if we do it at my house tomorrow, my mother's doing the same thing."

Sam sighed. "Yeah, I'll be super happy to come over, living with Carole and Burt's been super hard."

Blaine smiled, standing and pulling Sam up with him. "If staying there is too hard, you can stay with me as long as you need to, OK?"

"Yeah," Sam choked out. "I'll, uh... I'll get my things together tonight."

"I'm looking forward to it," Blaine smiled, turning to Tina. "You're welcome to stay too, of course, just for the heck of it."

"Wouldn't miss it for the world," she smiled.

Sam sighed, reaching down for his backpack, and slinging it over his shoulder. "We should go."

"Are you sure?" Tina asked him. He nodded and she turned to Blaine. "Blaine? You ready?"

Blaine nodded, picking up Tina's bag and handing it to her before throwing on his own. "Yeah, I want to go home now. I'll drop off my stuff and be right over to help you polish off your pity buffet."

"Thanks," Tina laughed, pulling him into a side-hug and leading the way off the stage and out to their cars. She stood at her car, watching the others reach their cars before shouting after them. "See you guys soon, OK? Love you!"


End file.
